Below are the best and the worst Call of Duty Maps across all 16 mainstream titles of the franchise.
The Five Worst Call of Duty Maps
We start with the bad ones first. Here are the worst Call of Duty maps through the years.
Wasteland, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Wasteland is one of the earliest maps in Call of Duty that received a lot of hate. While keeping it simple tends not to complicate things and throw balance out of whack, Wasteland just made it too simple for anyone’s liking. Evoking a nuclear wasteland, this post-apocalyptic map throws teams into a field with a single tunnel area where everyone gets stuck fighting without much space for maneuvering. People getting held into place meant that it was like shooting fish in a barrel for snipers. Indeed, snipers have the time of their lives playing on this map, the rest of the participating players are not going to enjoy a single second out of it.
Corrosion, Call of Duty: World at War
Wasteland was an aesthetic mess. It was bland with not much color except gray and brown. Corrosion, on the other hand, is probably the ugliest map in terms of looks, besting Wasteland for this dubious title. Playing a game in Corrosion would have you asking if something is wrong with your monitor. The sky is gray, the bricks are brown, and the only light color is lime green that has this uncomfortable contrast, causing you eye strain. Corrosion is one of the Call of Duty maps that actually physically hurts to play.
Countdown, Call of Duty 4
Space is important in any first-person shooter. Otherwise, it’s just going to be a mindless street fight without a hint of strategy. The Countdown map in Call of Duty 4 is a headscratcher for not having much space. Players simply need to throw grenades and they can be guaranteed multiple kills, since there is not much place to go set up defense, or breach as points of attack.
Stonehaven, Call of Duty: Ghosts
Call of Duty’s biggest competition is Battlefield, although both franchises play wildly different from each other. This is the reason why Stonehaven is such a bad fit for Call of Duty players: it felt like a Battlefield map. The previous maps mentioned in this list are indeed terrible for being too small. Stonehaven, however, overcompensates with an extremely large playing area that is simply not enjoyable. Playing in Stonehaven will make you feel like you are playing Skyrim without fast travel. It actually takes almost a minute to travel from end to end of the map.
Crisis, Call of Duty: Black Ops
Call of Duty: Black Ops is famous for carrying great maps, and that is why the inclusion of a Black Ops map in this shame list is a surprise. Crisis mixes all the bad things in the other maps: bad aesthetics, bland colors, and an excessively large playing area. Crisis is ranked first in this list because of its lazy design. Crisis is incredibly inconsistent, with some parts of the map being empty and other parts claustrophobic. It is a sniper’s dream come true if you camp in the empty space. However, other players will just cram inside the areas of the map with buildings. This makes the game frustrating. It is even more frustrating if you want to travel from point A to point B due to the large area. If you are a sniper, it might be an easy game until you find yourself waiting for several minutes, as no one will walk into that empty space.
The Five Best Call Of Duty Maps
Below are the best maps that have made Call of Duty one of the greatest video game series of all time. This best maps list is harder to rank compared to the worst maps list as Call of Duty is the home of many fantastic shooter maps.
Octane, Call of Duty: Ghosts
Call of Duty: Ghosts is considered one of the weaker Call of Duty games. There was lot of gameplay changes introduced that were not well received by series’ veterans. Several guns have no recoil, the time limit encouraged corner camping and most of the maps are just meh. Octane is one of the unique maps in Call of Duty. It is war-torn Las Vegas that is perfect for close-quarter combat and street fights. The map is divided into two with the main road cutting through the map. This gives an equal opportunity to both sides in terms of attacking and defending territories.
Detroit, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
Advanced Warfare is an acquired taste as the game features near-future weapons and combat. While the single-player experience in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare is one of the best in the franchise, Detroit is one of the maps that took advantage of the futuristic gadgets and weaponry in a multiplayer setting. Detroit’s art direction is also breathtaking. This is a map that is both good to look at and good to play at.
Summit, Call of Duty: Black Ops
Summit is the only snow map in Call of Duty that is actually good. Summit has a perfect balance of close-quarter fighting and sniping from a distance. The team’s spawn areas are also balanced, with neither side having favorable terrain or location. An intense firefight in the middle of the map is expected with both teams rushing to position first, before the other comes in.
Crash, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Crash has perfection in every aspect: size, balance, and art direction. There is a place for street fighting, there is a place for grenade throwing, there is a place for sniper battle, and you can also mix it all up due to the various structures lying around that benefit close-quarter fighting and long-distance shooting. It has one of the most iconic areas in Call of Duty: the crash site. While teams surround the crashed helicopter, other teams can populate the buildings and shut them down. It is a difficult map for those securing this area instead of defending it, but it’s an amazing feeling if you can take over the crash site.
Raid, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2
Raid is a small map set in a wealthy residence on top of Hollywood Hills. The sniper area is beloved by the community since several notable eSports players have accumulated huge catalogs of highlight reels, featuring amazing plays based off the area. Players will have killstreaks as spawn areas are clustered. However, Raid still possesses versatility as any weapon may be used and you’ll still have a fighting chance of some kills.
