Modern Warfare — The Modern Warfare series includes three games (Modern Warfare, Modern Warfare 2, and Modern Warfare 3). Modern Warfare Remastered is an updated version of the original Modern Warfare. Black Ops — The Black Ops series includes three entries (Black Ops, Black Ops 2, and Black Ops 3) with a fourth entry due for release in November 2018. Other — This includes games like World at War, Ghosts, Advanced Warfare, Infinite Warfare, and WW2.
When learning primary gameplay mechanics, it’s best to start with a game that uses clunkier mechanics (e. g. , Modern Warfare Remastered) than a newer game. This will allow you to understand the base mechanics without some of the extra conveniences you’ll find in newer games. A good way to learn these mechanics is by starting an offline multiplayer game by yourself and testing out each of the buttons on your controller. Once you’re comfortable with the buttons, their functions, and general movement, you can start doing more complex things like shooting, reloading, switching weapons, and so on.
Each game has slightly different secondary gameplay mechanics, so spend some time getting to know them before jumping into a multiplayer game. Playing the campaign is a good way to do this. Observing other players’ uses of secondary mechanics may also help you.
There are two main play styles: passive and aggressive. Passive players wait for enemies to come to them, while aggressive players take the fight to the other team. It’s good to be aggressive in Call of Duty, but you might want to start out by playing passively until you’ve mastered the basics.
TTK will vary depending on the gun you’re using. Once you understand your gun’s TTK, try to use the appropriate number of rounds per engagement. It can be tempting to reload as soon as you’ve shot an enemy two or three times, but make sure you’ve actually finished off the enemy before doing so.
Depending on the game type, you may play several rounds before the match is officially over. Typically speaking, you’ll be placed in a new match within a couple minutes of the last one ending if you don’t exit the lobby.
As you level up, you’ll unlock new weapons, perks, killstreaks, and so on. Most COD games allow you to unlock attachments for your guns by using the guns in question (e. g. , getting a certain number of kills with an AK-47 will unlock a red dot sight for the AK-47). Games in the Black Ops series handle unlocks in a different way: once you level up, you receive a token that you can spend on any item for which your current level is appropriate.
Versatility is key in Call of Duty, so you will occasionally have to change up your playing style to fit maps or gametypes. For example, if you usually play aggressively but you’re defending an objective, it’s best to play more conservatively for the time being.
Primary weapon — Your main weapon. Categories include assault rifles, SMGs, shotguns, sniper rifles, and LMGs. Secondary weapon — Your backup weapon. Categories include pistols, riot shields, rocket launchers, and—in some games—shotguns. Lethal and Nonlethal — Throwable items. Lethal items include things like grenades, Semtex, and throwing knives, while nonlethal options include flashbang grenades, stun grenades, and so on. Perks — Modifiers that change attributes about your character. Perks do things like allowing you to run faster, carry more ammo, avoid showing up on the minimap, and so on. Killstreaks — Rewards you can earn for getting consecutive kills without dying. These include things like radar for your team, airstrikes, gunship support, and tactical nukes. Some games also have death-streaks that will activate after several deaths with no kills. Wildcards — Modifiers in the Black Ops series. These allow you to “break” the game’s rules by doing things like taking an extra attachment for your secondary weapon or replacing your secondary weapon with a primary one. Attachments — Items that go on your primary and secondary weapons. These include scopes, silencers, grenade launchers, heartbeat detectors, and so on. Specialist — Games in the Black Ops series allow you to play as a “Specialist”, which is a set character with specific abilities. Choosing a Specialist who fits your play style will give you an edge.
By default, you can aim down sights (ADS) by pressing the left trigger (consoles) or holding down the right mouse button (PC). As a general rule, don’t fire your weapon without aiming down your gun’s sights unless you’re at point-blank range.
Exceptions to the one-shot kill rule include Black Ops 3 and Infinite Warfare, as these games both use your primary weapon’s stock as a melee weapon. Some games, such as Black Ops 3 and Advanced Warfare, use a punching animation instead of the knife.
The exception to this rule is if you’re in an area with a large number of enemies. If you have enough bullets in your gun’s magazine to take on one or two more people, it may make more sense to do so before reloading; you can always switch to your secondary if another enemy comes around the corner before you finish your reload. Guns such as LMGs (light machine guns), sniper rifles, and shotguns typically have high reload times, so it’s best to reload these in cover rather than on the go.
When playing objective-based games like Search and Destroy, you’ll want to make sure that you’re not just treating it like an iteration of Team Deathmatch. Kills aren’t always the only end goal.
Watching the kill cam will also delay your spawning into the match, which is a good thing if you’re dying often as it gives your team time to recoup some points without you dying. Some games, such as ones in the Black Ops series, allow you to rewatch matches from your perspective via the “Theater” option. This is a good idea if you want to analyze your own games.
Campaign — A linear, story-based game mode. Call of Duty games released in 2018 and beyond may not have campaigns. Nazi Zombies — A horde-based game mode in which you attempt to survive waves of zombies. The Ghosts version of this mode is called “Extinction”. Spec Ops — A collection of short excerpts of missions or challenges. Spec Ops is only available in Modern Warfare 2 and Modern Warfare 3. Survival — Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has a wave-based spin-off of Spec Ops called “Survival”. This mode is comparable to Firefight from Halo or Horde Mode from Gears of War.
If you’ve played Call of Duty before, you’re probably familiar enough with these mechanics that you can play whichever mode you like.
The “Veteran” difficulty can be incredibly hard, especially in older games such as Modern Warfare 2 and Black Ops.
This is especially true on higher difficulties.
Some COD games, such as Black Ops III, replace the knife with a standard melee attack; however, the principle is the same.
A good rule of thumb is to reload after every engagement. For example, if you kill two enemies and you know a few more are coming, duck back into cover and reload before proceeding. Spraying through your entire magazine by holding down the trigger isn’t recommended, as doing so is both inaccurate and wasteful. Try tapping the trigger to fire in bursts.
Use your knife for the first few rounds. Ammo is invaluable, and you can kill zombies in one or two strikes with the knife during the initial rounds. Go for headshots. Zombies can soak up a huge amount of body damage unless you have an exceptionally powerful weapon (e. g. , the Ray Gun). Run away if you get hit once. Zombies can down you by hitting you more than once, so let your health recharge before re-engaging the zombies. Don’t skip the upgrades. Buying weapons, upgrading them via the Pack-a-Punch machine, and purchasing drinkable buffs will all help you survive for longer. Avoid getting cornered. It’s better to kite zombies around the map by running in circles than to get stuck in between a burning car and a mob of the undead.
There’s no specific strategy for Spec Ops since each mission is different. In Modern Warfare 2, speed-running Spec Ops missions when possible is often more viable than slowly inching your way through them. If you’re playing Modern Warfare 3, you might also want to check out the horde-based “Survival” mode found in the “Spec Ops” section.
