TheCall of Duty: Black Opsseries began in 2010, with the franchise releasing 5 main games and boasting over 100 years of in-game lore. From Vietnamto Rebirth Islandand everything in between, dozens of locations are explored as the series covers real-world events like the Bay of Pigs Invasion and Operation Desert Storm. With the story beginning in the 1960s and reaching the far-flung future of 2065, players have faced off with both human soldiers and deadly robots alike.
WithCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s campaign, Raven Software took players back to the 1980s, exploring a part of the Cold War that had previously gone untouched in the series. Adding yet another major chunk of storytelling to the lengthyCall of Duty: Black Opstimeline, the 2020 release makes a new story summary worthwhile. Players should buckle up for a wild ride, however, as there are major twists to see in every singleBlack Opsgame.
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Call of Duty: Black Ops - 1961-1968
The first game in the series and storyline, the originalCall of Duty: Black Ops,places gamers in the shoes of Alex Mason. Born in Alaska and raised to put his survival skills to good use, the character’s survivalist background is shown throughout the game.Call of Duty: Black Opsbegins with Mason strapped to a chair and interrogating by CIA member Jason Hudson, with Mason seeming just as confused as the player likely is.
Throughout the course of the game, players learn that Alex Mason was brainwashed by Nikita Dragovich, a Russian terrorist using sleeper agents to spread a deadly gas across America. Dragovich also tasked Alex Masonwith killing President JFK, though it remains unclear if he ever carried out the assassination. Regardless, someone tampered with the initial brainwashing process, asCall of Duty: World at Warcharacter Viktor Reznov further reprogrammed Mason’s brain after it had already been rewired.
With Reznov’s best friend being poisoned by Dragovich and Nova 6, a series of names was given to Mason. As Mason progresses through the list, he believes it is Reznov killing each target and carrying out his revenge. In reality, it is Mason himself doing the killing, with the game’s big twist revealing that Reznov had died earlier on in the game’s Vorkuta level. After discovering Alex Mason’s brainwashing, Hudson and the tortured protagonist stop Dragovich before he can carry out his war crimes.
While the story features exciting setpieces and great performances, the brainwashing twist remains the reason for the game’s campaign being remembered so fondly. With Treyarch turning the heavily-memed line “what do the numbers mean”into part of a Gunfight mapinCall of Duty: Black Ops War, it seems like originalBlack Opshas not been forgotten by those who made it either.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War - 1981-1984
WhileCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold Waris the most recent release in the series, it is the second game in the timeline. Serving as a direct follow-up to the original game, the sequel sees Raven Software taking liberties with real-world history to give its characters a massive challenge to overcome. While the game does focus on aRussian agent that was rumored to be active in the real-life Cold War, it also introduced the extremely unrealistic Operation Greenlight. Seeing nukes placed throughout all of Europe as a failsafe in case America lost, the story sees players stopping Perseus from detonating those same nukes.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s campaign does many things that make itstop feeling likeCall of Duty, and while most are positive changes, one controversial decision sees players creating their own character. Going by the codename Bell and not speaking during the game’s story, the decision is one that feels weird considering Alex Mason’s role in the story. Relegated to a supporting character position, the former protagonist does little of note despite being playable in a few missions. Despite this, the game still delivers an excellent twist that works as a reversal of the original Mason surprise, tasking the player-made Bell with making a massive decision. While there are two very different choices that lead to entirely separate final missions, the canon ending sees the plan of Perseus foiled and the villain escaping.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 - 1986-1989, 2025
Both propelling theBlack Opsseries into the future and picking up afterCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, 2012’sCall of Duty: Black Ops 2saw a greater focus placed on Frank Woods. Featuring an outstanding performance from originalWoods voice actor James C. Burns, the campaign revolves around the character’s relationship with new antagonist Raul Menendez (who is also incredibly by actor Kamar de los Reyes). After Woods is rescued by Alex Mason in Angola, the duo moves to take down Menendez. However, a stray grenade leads to Woods killing the villain’s sister, with Menendez escaping and seeking revenge on Woods.
Menendez gets that revenge, tricking Woods into shooting Alex Mason before permanently crippling Woods after he foolishly carries out the act. Going on to torture former CIA handler Jason Hudson in front of Woods, Menendez kills Hudson with his dead sister’s locket, bringing a chilling end to the violent scene. The story continues in 2025, with an aged Menendez leading a terrorist movement called “Cordis Die.” Seeking guidance from Frank Woods, Alex Mason’s son David eventually stops Menendez, with the canon ending seeing the monstrous villain killed for good. However, likeCall of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s multiple endings, there are several variations ofBlack Ops 2’s conclusion — with Mendendez finally finishing off Woods in some and others seeing Alex Mason survive his accidental killing.
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Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 - 2045
Easily the weirdest inclusion in theCall of Duty: Black Opstimeline, the unfinished storyline ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 4sees cutscenes and radios explaining the odd narrative. With aproperBlack Ops 4campaign canceled, cutscenes for specialist HQ missions were added. Essentially tutorials for each character, the missions were nothing special — though the story told inside them certainly stands out. Following Alex Mason’s granddaughter Savannah, the futuristic plot takes place in 2045 and sees the member of the Mason family using advanced technology to resurrect the dead.
Using the term “archetypes” for the clones, the game’sbattle royale mode Blackoutis confirmed to be a testing ground for these revived soldiers. Bringing back her grandfather and his best friend Frank Woods, Savannah has an uncomfortable romance with the latter. Under the orders of his girlfriend, Woods attempts to brainwash the revived Mason, tricking him into killing Jessica Mason — his other granddaughter. At odds with one another due to a dispute over the ethics of the archetype cloning process, Savannah failed to kill Jessica once already. The story ends with the wounded Jessica gatheringBlack Ops 4’s multiplayer specialists to fight Savannah and her resurrected clones of old campaign characters. With theBlack Opsseries going back to the past, though, it seems unlikely that this cliffhanger centered on Alex Mason’s warring grandchildren is ever resolved.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 - 2065
Chronologically the last game in the longBlack Opstimeline,Call of Duty: Black Ops 3’s story is also the most misunderstood. While the game was widely appreciated for its Zombies offering, providing players with a memorable DLC season capped off with a collection offan-favorites in Zombies Chronicles, its campaign was mostly ignored. While it is certainly flawed, having no connection to previousBlack Opsgames apart from a brief mention of Menendez and Cordis Die, the futuristic title offers a wildly complex story. Essentially telling two stories in one,Call of Duty: Black Ops 3’s campaign hides its true narrative in the scrolling text at the start of each mission.
The campaign players see is really a simulation recreated by a faulty AI named Corvus, with the player being shown memory fragments of supporting cast member John Taylor. The missions are out of sequence as well, leading fans to do plenty of digging if they want to find the true story of the game. Dealing with the CIA using Nova 6 for their own gains, as well as the organization introducing a foolproof way to spy on the American population, the plot puts a unique twist on the usual “America is good” story seen in the series. While the convoluted storytelling process used in the game is not for everyone, there is far more to the layered narrative ofCall of Duty: Black Ops 3than meets the eye.
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