Debuting all the way back in 1998, Delta Force was a pretty prolific series in the earlier days of military shooters, predating both the Call of Duty and Battlefield franchises by a good few years. But with the advent of those franchises, the military shooter genre grew exponentially within a very short duration, and the Delta Force series couldn't quite keep up, with its last entry dropping in 2009. Despite that, Delta Force has returned, with Delta Force: Hawk Ops slated for release in the near future.

Announced back in August 2023, Delta Force: Hawk Ops will be a free-to-play reimagining of the military shooter series, delivering a multiplayer mode set in the 2030s, and a single-player campaign set during the 1990s. From the moment Delta Force: Hawk Ops was first revealed, it was clear that it was going to be an uphill battle for the series' bold return, and the game's most recent reveal has proven that point in pretty dramatic fashion.

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call of duty black ops 6 place on the timeline
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Where Does Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Fit on the Timeline

Now that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 has been fully revealed, its place on the Call of Duty timeline becomes clear.

Delta Force: Hawk Ops' Reveal Has Come at a Bad Time

Delta Force: Hawk Ops Has Been Overshadowed By Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Revealed fully at the recent Summer Game Fest live event, Delta Force: Hawk Ops had a pretty solid showing. Its gunplay looked tight, its visuals looked decent, its campaign mode looked intriguing, and it brought back memories of classic military shooters that the gaming world hasn't seen for over two decades. But even during this reveal, an ominous shadow loomed over Delta Force: Hawk Ops. In just a few days' time, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 was getting its own extended reveal.

The biggest military shooter franchise on the market, an entry that fans are already extremely excited about, and the first entry to release under Microsoft as a day-one Xbox Game Pass title, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is undoubtedly one of the biggest games of 2024, and its first official reveal last Sunday was a major deal. So, unfortunately, when Delta Force: Hawk Ops was shown at Summer Game Fest, it was impossible for many not to shrug it off, and instead set their sights on Black Ops 6's upcoming reveal.

Then Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's Direct aired, and it stuck the landing in a big way. After a disappointing 2023 CoD entry, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 looks like a true course correction for the franchise, offering a fully-fledged campaign mode, 16 original maps on launch, the return of round-based Zombies, and innovative new features like its Omnimovement system, all of which were presented during the Direct by a team of passionate devs. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is probably the only military shooter anyone will be talking about for a while now, which puts Delta Force: Hawk Ops in an awkward spot.

Delta Force: Hawk Ops Shouldn't Be Easily Overlooked

But while Delta Force: Hawk Ops could have probably timed its full reveal a bit better, there's still enough there to separate it from Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, and to make it a game worth watching. Along with being a free-to-play multiplayer extraction shooter, Delta Force: Hawk Ops also offers some traditional team-based multiplayer modes. But by far Delta Force: Hawk Ops' most intriguing aspect is its single-player component, which looks to remaster the 2003 entry's Black Hawk Down campaign. While Black Ops 6 is also taking place in the 1990s, Delta Force: Hawk Ops' Black Hawk Down campaign should offer some unique locales, characters, and set pieces.