Top 20 Craziest Call of Duty Moments

“Call of Duty 2” (2005)

“Call of Duty” would grow crazier and more bombastic with later campaigns. But there are still some solid moments from the early days. The second game features three campaigns set during World War II. And the first level of the American one sees you land at La Pointe du Hoc in Normandy. Of course, it immediately goes to Hell, and you get to have your very own “Saving Private Ryan” moment as your fellow soldiers pile up around you. You’re then meant to climb a cliffside as gunfire continues ringing out. This moment of pure chaos leaves the player shaken as they try to continue the level.

“Call of Duty: Ghosts” (2013)

The campaign of “Ghosts” was criticized upon release, and is still one of the weaker in the series. But we can’t deny how strong it starts. After a brief prologue, we’re taken up into space, where we try to defend a space station from a group of terrorists known as the Federation. Taking “Call of Duty” off the ground, and its gunplay into a setting where it really shouldn’t be, was a tense way to kick off the story. Even tenser is the fact that we fail. The Federation gains control of the Space Station’s orbital weaponry, firing on several US cities. Not only that, but you and your team sacrifice yourselves to destroy it so that no more lives are lost.

“Call of Duty: World at War” (2008)

The underrated “World at War” features two campaigns. And the beginning to the Soviet one immediately pulls you in, in the darkest of ways. We play as Private Dimitri Petrenko, coming to while surrounded by a group of his comrades, either dying or already dead. German soldiers ruthlessly dispose of those left breathing, except for yourself and a Sergeant named Viktor Reznov. What follows is a tense crawl among the dead and debris, with Dimitri sniping surrounding soldiers so the two can make it to safety. Navigating the demolished Stalingrad, narrowly avoiding further forces, remains an intense sequence that formed a lump in our throats and a tight grip on our controllers.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

All hell breaks loose in this initially stealthy level, and being a two man team, the only thing Roach and Soap can do is escape when a hundred Russian soldiers are trying to kill them. Using snowmobiles for their getaway, the pair escape through the tricky terrain, avoiding trees, rocks, gunfire and other snowmobiles alike to get to their escape helicopter, which is—yep, you guessed it—at bingo fuel. Can’t have a Call of Duty game without racing against the clock in some way or another. Still, on top of all their other obstacles, they avoid an enemy chopper, eventually culminating to a giant gorge that can only be jumped when at full speed. Talk about pressure.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare” (2019)

The decision to reboot the “Modern Warfare” subseries may have been a confusing one. But the campaigns aren’t without their moments of greatness. While many of the craziest moments in the franchise are over-the-top spectacle, the ‘Clean House’ mission in the 2019 game is crazy in its level of suspense. It follows your team navigating a townhouse in search of members of the Al-Qatala terrorist group. The night vision goggles, tactical movement, and close quarters make for an incredibly claustrophobic encounter. You have no idea what’s waiting for you, literally around every tight corner. The mission has been praised for its level of grounded realism, and it certainly got our blood pumping.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” (2011)

Now, back to the big set pieces. In the climax of the original “Modern Warfare” trilogy, World War III is in full swing. During a key mission, a massive battle occurs in France. The entire level sees you fighting Russian forces in the streets of Paris while searching for a bomb maker. Things don’t go so well, though. While the good guys are able to find and capture their target, Paris is left much worse for wear. With all the warfare surrounding you, the level ends with the collapse of the Eiffel Tower right in front of you. Seeing one of the world’s most recognizable landmarks topple into rubble was definitely an insane moment.

“Call of Duty: Black Ops” (2010)

While Dimitri narrowly makes it out of “World at War,” death catches up to him soon after. In a flashback seen in 2010’s “Black Ops,” he and Reznov are sent to collect an especially deadly toxic nerve gas, as well as the Nazi scientist who created it. Unfortunately, they’re betrayed by the men who sent them. While Reznov barely makes it to safety, he watches helplessly as Dimitri is subjected to the gas as an experiment. Needless to say, it isn’t a pretty way to go. Watching the character we had played as in a previous campaign go out in such a fashion was brutal. Reznov destroyed all remnants of the gas, but it didn’t heal the pain of this death.

“Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare” (2007)

There are several crazy moments in the original “Modern Warfare.” But for now, let’s start at the end. Appropriately titled ‘Game Over,’ the final mission sees you and your allies in a tight spot, with the forces of villain Imran Zakhaev closing in on you. During a climactic moment atop a bridge, an explosion knocks you out. And when you come to, you see many of your allies fall, including one trying to move you to safety. In slow motion, with sorrowful music playing, you think for a moment, that this is it. But when the bad guys are distracted by an attack helicopter and a wounded Price slides you a single handgun, you take aim and finish the fight. Alright, time to unclench.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” (2011)

Say what you want about Call of Duty, but the set-pieces are always stunning, and that goes for when they’re being completely obliterated, too. Take this mission, for example. A firefight ensues after the plane you’re on plummets to the ground after being boarded by hijackers. It’s a non-stop action-packed thrill ride, as there are moments when the plane drops altitude so quickly, you and your enemies float while exchanging fire. Watching the plane crash and half of it fall apart before exploding is an absolutely incredible sequence that’ll have you holding your breath.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” (2011)

Taking control of Price, the whole climax is a pulse pounding race to catch Makarov, starting with storming the hotel while wearing a juggernaut suit, taking down an attack chopper, and then jumping off the rooftop to Makarov’s helicopter. At this point, Price knows he is past the point of no return, and he doesn’t care, as long as he gets his vengeance, and boy is it sweet. The most intense moment comes when Price strangles Makarov with a steel cord and breaks the glass beneath them. Makarov had this coming to him for a long time, and it proves to be one of the most satisfying conclusions in all of Call of Duty history. Objective completed.

“Call of Duty: Black Ops II” (2012)

The mission titled ‘Suffer With Me’ features a great rug pull moment within the series. As Frank Woods, you go along with Alex Mason, the protagonist from the first “Black Ops,” to capture General Manuel Noriega and use him to get to Raul Menendez, the sequel’s main villain. During what should be the prisoner exchange, Woods is convinced to shoot a hooded Menendez. Only, when he goes up to the body, he finds that the whole mission was a trap set by Menendez, and we’ve just killed our friend. While you can choose to not shoot Alex in the head, leading to his survival, that gets you a non-canonical ending. As far as the overall story is concerned, you unwittingly execute your close ally.

“Call of Duty: World at War” (2008)

These days, players expect a ‘Zombies’ mode in “Call of Duty” along with the traditional multiplayer. But when it was first introduced in the series, it came as a total shock. That’s because it wasn’t marketed at all; no one spoke a word about it. After finishing the main campaign of “World at War,” you get a post-credits sting. A man wakes up in a snowy area after a plane crash with blurry figures in the distance. A single zombie runs up to him before cutting to the blood-red ‘Nazi Zombies’ logo, and the mode is then unlocked. This ended the story on an utterly surprising note. But the mode was an absolute blast, even back then.

“Call of Duty: Black Ops III” (2015)

A first-person point of view undoubtedly adds to the immersion of this visceral and brutal moment, in which a robot rips both your arms off and beats you almost to death. Oh, and it also breaks your leg. Taking place in the first mission of the game, you know you’re going to be in for one hell of a ride going forward. The fact that the sequence is quite long, and with your characters screaming in its entirety adds to the shock factor. Robots, hey… almost never works out when they’re involved.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

We can’t have Shepherd betray us, and then not get revenge, right? We’ll get to that part in a bit, but this moment of vengeance is pretty damn awesome if you ask us. After tracking the villain down, he nearly kills your character. Everything depends on Soap at this moment, only he’s got a knife in his chest. Bleeding out, he can only watch as Shepherd beats on Price. At this stage there’s only one thing Soap can do. Yep, pull the knife out of his chest and hurl it at Shepherd. Blood spurts out of his eye as he falls back in slow-motion. That was for Ghost and Roach.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3” (2011)

“Modern Warfare” features some of the best characters in “Call of Duty,” which many players got rather attached to throughout the trilogy. One of the main ones is John ‘Soap’ MacTavish. During the ‘Blood Brothers’ mission of the third game, before the player finally gets their hands on Makarov, the team tracks the villain to Prague. Amid the gunfire, a building Soap and player character Yuri are in explodes, and Soap is gravely injured in the process. Although Yuri and Price get Soap to safety, he succumbs to his wounds in one of the franchise’s most gut-punching deaths. He was the main playable character in the first “Modern Warfare” and had survived countless battles. So this demise was a painful and unexpected one.

“Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare” (2007)

The first Modern Warfare brought a lot of new things to the table for the series, and this moment was one of the first that took players completely unaware of just how cinematic and affecting the series could be. Getting caught in a nuclear explosion and watching everyone in the city get destroyed is jaw-dropping enough, but then you get to continue playing as the dying Paul Jackson, witnessing the devastation and horror of it. The level in which the nuclear device is detonated is called Shock and Awe, and that’s exactly what we were feeling when it happened.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

Not only crazy, this sequence is generally exciting, both to watch and to participate in. You get to observe from the International Space Station as a nuclear device is detonated in the upper atmosphere, causing an EMP which affects the surface of the planet. Now in control of Ramirez, you witness planes and helicopters fall from the sky, crashing into fiery explosions around you. Want to know the most insane part? You have to actually run to shelter while dodging the falling aircrafts. This is after already being involved in a helicopter crash yourself and barely surviving. No rest for the weary.

“Call of Duty: Black Ops” (2010)

An undeniably shocking moment, this scene is a grand example of great storytelling. “What do the numbers mean?” is something players are asking along with the protagonists throughout the campaign, and this moment delivers one of the craziest twists in the history of Call of Duty. Reznov, a character you supposedly play side-by-side with a lot of the game, actually died a while ago, and Mason has just been imagining him. All of Reznov’s actions were in fact Mason’s, a side-effect of the brainwashing Mason endured. Definitely a crazy moment.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

Okay, a betrayal is one thing, but also then killing two favorite characters takes things a bit too far. Players were left holding their controllers in shock and anger as everything went to hell. Shot in the stomach, Roach can only watch as he and Ghost are then tossed aside and set on fire. Not the best way to go. Fans did not see this coming, and it was one of the most heartbreaking moments in the series, all so that Shepherd can hide the truth and come out of this as a war hero, rather than the instigator. No, we’re not crying, there’s just something in our eyes.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2” (2009)

You knew this one was coming. Definitely pushing boundaries, No Russian is not only the most controversial level in the Call of Duty series, but also one of the most controversial level’s in video game history. The mission has you play an undercover character, and involves you shooting down hundreds of innocent civilians in a Russian airport, which plays a major role in starting World War III. No other game has put you front and center as an instigator in a civilian-dense terrorist attack, and although you can completely opt out in participating in the level with no repercussions, many people found this particular moment to be highly disturbing and even sickening. Tasteless, or effective and impactful storytelling? You decide.

Are there any crazy “Call of Duty” moments we left off? Share them with us down in the comments!