What is the best-selling Call of Duty?

Players within the FPS community may be wondering about the best-selling Call of Duty game in Activision’s line-up. The CoD franchise has produced numerous successful titles since it was introduced on October 29, 2003, and has maintained cultural relevance over the years by improving their gameplay.

CoD: Black Ops is the best-selling Call of Duty title as of July 2024, selling over 30 million copies worldwide since its release on November 9, 2010. The game is seen as a spin-off of the main CoD storyline and takes place in the midst of the 1960 Cold War.

This article takes a look at the possible reasons why Black Ops is the best-selling Call of Duty game.

Note: Some aspects of this article are subjective and solely reflect the opinions of the writer

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Possible reasons CoD: Black Ops is the best-selling Call of Duty

Black Ops 1 introduced iconic maps like Nuketown in the CoD series (Image via Activision)

CoD: Black Ops is regarded as one of the best FPS games in the franchise's history. There are many possible reasons why it is the best-selling Call of Duty title.

Black Ops was a fresh take on the series, and players were introduced to legendary characters like Alex Mason and Frank Woods, among others. It introduced innovative gameplay features, such as the dive-to-prone maneuver, which later evolved into the dolphin dive, and added a flashlight to certain weapons.

Notably, Black Ops was the first CoD title in the series where players could hear dialogue during campaign missions, as characters were capable of speech.

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Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies (2010) (Image via Activision)

Black Ops became the best-selling Call of Duty title, in part, by successfully incorporating key gameplay elements from its predecessors, such as Modern Warfare One and Modern Warfare Two. It had a captivating campaign with memorable dialogues. This combination attracted players who sought both a compelling narrative and engaging shooting action.

Black Ops 1 gained significant traction through the introduction of its groundbreaking Zombies mode, a first in the Black Ops series. This dedicated mode, featuring relentless waves of zombies and heart-pounding action, became immensely popular and attracted many new players. This successful fusion of the FPS and survival-horror genres proved to be an alluring combination for many.

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