Fast, twitchy, reflex-based gunplay are only some of the characteristics that define the Call of Duty experience. It would be an understatement to suggest that Call of Duty was successfully able to break into a market that was dominated by industry juggernauts. A significant amount of the franchise success is owed to its reliably entertaining single-player campaign – but what has almost always propelled each game to massive success has always been the multiplayer mode.
The series’ signature fast and reflex-based gunplay comes to life in the Multiplayer mode as players battle against one another in a frantic game of tag (but with bullets). Unlike its EA counterpart in Battlefield, COD’s approach has been rather distinct when it comes to map design – in that it doesn’t care for size as much as it emphasizes pace and chaos.
COD is at its best when the match dwells into pure chaos and teams are rushing to each other’s spawn points and flooding lanes with scorestreaks. When the game finally came to Mobile – it was refreshing to see that Call of Duty didn’t lose any of its pace-based gameplay value – even with the constraints of touch controls.
A major aspect of what makes each COD game especially frantic and adrenaline-fueled is the map design. Each map tries to cater to a different style of play – without it ever losing the sense of momentum and speed players come to COD for. COD Mobile is as frantic and pacey as its console and PC counterparts – and the decision to bring in maps from previous games was a great decision to rope in the PC and console gamers. Here, we take a look at the maps in Call of Duty Mobile’s Multiplayer mode and see what it is about them that makes them special.
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Top 10 Maps in Call of Duty Mobile and what makes them special
1) Nuketown
Easily one of the most recognizable and iconic maps of the series, Nuketown is as popular on COD Mobile as it is on console and PC, and it is all down to how simple, elegant and totally brilliant this map is. Nuketown is Call of Duty at its best – chaotic, claustrophobic, fast, and absolutely relentless.
Nuketown first appeared in Treyarch’s original Black Ops in 2010 and has been a mainstay of the Black Ops franchise since, and has made its way over to Mobile as well. The map is as simple as it gets – with 3 lanes and two interiors with one floor of elevation. The game comes at you fast and hard and it can be a bit overwhelming – but it doesn’t take long to fall in love with Nuketown.
What makes this map great
Plenty of open spaces, lots of cover in the middle and yet there is no place to hide – not even in your spawn area. Nuketown has absolutely no safe spaces – as, at any given moment, players can reach across the map in an instant.
It doesn’t take long for players to run across the opponent – as each lane is likely being contested at all times. Plus, going down the middle lane is a sure-fire way of getting absolutely pelted from all 4 sides. Nuketown is perhaps the best way to get acquainted with COD’s signature twitchy gameplay and pace.
2) Rust
This map is one of the old guard – a true favourite of the Call of Duty community and it is quite easy to see why. It doesn’t take long to figure out that, much like Nuketown, nowhere is safe in Rust – as even the highest ground possible is as vulnerable as the open grounds underneath. First introduced in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (2008), Rust is a fan-favourite if there ever was one.
The way to survive Rust is to be the fastest gun in the arena – as there simply isn’t a way out of a 1v1 with an enemy because there is hardly any cover.
What makes this map great
“1v1 me in Rust!” became one of the most popular sayings on the internet – and that phrase alone is enough for players to dive back into a pool of memories of this barren wasteland. As it just so happens – Rust is about the best place players can challenge each other to a 1v1 as it makes for one of the best games of cat-n-mouse.
Taking high ground in the structure only means that the player is leaving themselves open to stealthy attacks from behind as enemies can easily maneuver around it and climb atop. There are no lanes, as such, as the design is fairly circular and straight-forward with one giant attraction in the middle.
If it is quick games one is after – Rust can offer the most bang for buck, period.
3) Highrise
A personal favourite, Highrise was brought to the series in Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 (2009). On the face of it, Highrise looks like any ol’ COD map with the standard 3-lane options – but players will quickly find out – there’s so much more to it.
Perhaps the most challenging map of the bunch – Highrise is a rusher’s dream. Multiple lanes diverging into more – with several chokepoints, blindspots, and plenty of sniper nests. The map caters to virtually every play style imaginable.
What makes this map great
Simply – there is no wrong loadout for Highrise. Sniper? Viable. Shotgun? Sort of viable. SMG? Extremely viable. The amount of freedom this map affords to the player easily makes this one of the most genius maps of the bunch.
The signature tunnel – which is often where players rack up the most kills – is sure to have given plenty of players both bad and good memories. Highrise is simply COD at its best – and perhaps it needs a bit of a remodeling for Mobile – just so players can experience nostalgia with some welcome changes.
4) Hijacked
This is a bit of a contentious entry – as Hijacked can often rank quite highly for many players – while others absolutely hate the sight of it. Hijacked was first introduced to players in Call of Duty Black Ops II (2012) and became one of the most polarizing maps in the franchise’s history.
The three-lane system is at its most obvious – with the cruise ship providing literal barriers between each lane. The absolutely blind corners makes for some of the frustrating deaths – but on the flipside – they make for some easy kills.
What makes this map great
Hijacked is clearly one of the best-looking maps in the history of the franchise but that is not the reason why it’s up here. It is rated so highly purely because of the amount of offensive possibilities it offers.
Going low and underneath and popping out the other end to wreak havoc in the enemy’s side of the map is a feeling COD players can’t get enough of. At the same time, the central lane is often camper-paradise – leading matches to become stagnant and thoroughly draining. The map is all-function and no-gloat despite having one of the most aesthetically pleasing designs and architecture.
5) Crossfire
Crossfire is an import from Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare (2007), and on the face of it, it doesn’t look quite as bombastic as, say Highrise, or as claustrophobic and pacey as Nuketown – but it has a lot going for it. In terms of elevation and verticality – Crossfire has very little to offer, but what makes it really fun is that it is essentially a Sniper’s map.
Close quarters combat takes place mostly indoors as the middle lane (which is most of the map) is essentially one giant kill zone for a sniper to sit at the one end of and pick off targets easily.
What makes this map great
It makes complete sense for anyone to go with a Sniper class for this particular map, but they will find that it is equally as rewarding to flank from the sides and engage enemies and get the drop on the enemy sniper.
Essentially, Crossfire gives way to a game of tug-of-war where each team tries to claim the sniper’s nest at the north end of the street- as that is the one that provides the most amount of cover and view of the middle lane.
6) Firing Range
This map is probably every player’s introduction to COD Mobile as this is where the tutorial with Simon “Ghost” Riley takes place. The map first appeared in Call of Duty Black Ops (2010) and is quite minimal in its approach – but that isn’t a knock on the map as it is still quite effective.
The map has appeared sporadically throughout the Black Ops series and is often one of the most complicated maps to understand. First off, despite its relatively simple setup – the lanes can often can muddled up as the dummy houses can often interfere with the player’s orientation.
What makes this map great
The way Firing Range is setup, it can often be disorienting to rush through the map blitzing one’s way through. The map often forces players to play a little more methodically – as ending up near the enemy’s spawn point is extremely easy.
Thus, in order to rack up points for Scorestreaks, players will need to play a lot more carefully and pick the right lanes to rush. An SMG is the weapon of choice for this map as there often isn’t that much distance between players and having that long a sight on an enemy is often rare.
The disorienting nature of this map, plus the number of cover and blindspots strewn all across makes it one of the most challenging maps in Season 6’s rotation.
7) Takeoff
This is where the big boys start to come in, as Takeoff is easily one of the biggest maps ever in Call of Duty history. The map first appeared in Call of Duty Black Ops II (2012), and quickly became one of the biggest hot-button topics in the community.
While many appreciated the sprawling, potentially mid-scale warfare scenario – many felt it betrayed the COD feel of small, pacey combat. Regardless of the size of the thing – there is plenty of close-combat mayhem to be had -as the interiors will continuously force the players into a corner.
What makes this map great
Despite is moderately large size, Takeoff never does not lack in terms of speed, momentum and pure, unbridled chaos. Scoresctreaks such as Predator missiles can often be a little ineffective – given all the interiors and safe spaces to duck under, but that just means that there is a level playing-field for even lower-level players to snag some kills.
Takeoff is a good balance between size and pace – and makes a great case for itself as one of the most balanced maps in COD Mobile.
8) Raid
Another import from Call of Duty Black Ops II (2012), this map is one of the most swanky places combat takes place in the COD univsere. Hollywood Hills, LA is the backdrop of this absolute adrenaline-rush of a map and it never fails to impress regardless of how many times you play it.
The map is fairly flat, with a decent number of interiors and tightly-constructed lanes. The highlight is a central point of the map that essentially provides a crossroad for players to approach from all 4 directions – leading to an intense 4-way battle that can often be a great place to rack up kills.
What makes this map great
Raid is the quintessential Call of Duty map, in the way that it is minimal but not lazy. It is pacey, but that does not mean it simply asks players to blitz through each lane mindlessly. Blindspots and tight corners are aplenty – which means the player’s head must always be on a swivel.
The map is perfect for Search and Destroy as it is a little bigger than the quintessential TDM map – and it offers plenty of cover and strategical chokepoints to deploy all kinds of traps.
9) Meltdown
Meltdown is yet another product of Black Ops II (2012) and is a fairly medium-sized map with plenty of elevation and opportunity for creative plays. The map isn’t bland, by any means, but it rarely goes out of its way to be adventurous for it to be truly remarkable.
The beauty and brilliance of Meltdown – much like some of the best maps in Call of Duty – lies in its simplicity. It does way more with way less than some of the biggest maps in other arena shooters. Meltdown is yet another example of how COD usually manages to be extremely fulfilling despite having a minimal approach to map design.
What makes this map great
The map is a standard 3-lane design, which means it is ideal for TDM, Free-for-all – or even Hardpoint. The map encourages players to rush and blitz with SMGs instead of taking their time with each play.
The best part about Meltdown is that it wastes zero time to kick things off – and players are met with strong opposition from one another right out of their spawn points.
10) Crash
Probably the map that players spend most of their time on in COD Mobile as it happens to be one of the most popular maps in the game. Crash first arrived on the scene in Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare (2007) and has become one of the most iconic maps of the series.
Crash is fairly straightforward – which is where its strength lies. Its 3 lanes are equally chaotic with the middle lane being one of the easiest ways to get shot and/or get kills easily. The presence of interiors all across the map means there’s plenty of cover and the opportunity to dip should the player feel like they’re outgunned.
What makes this map great
Crash is one of those maps that generally asks players to rush way more than to play methodically. Thus, an SMG comes to the rescue in most situations – but a Sniper could also prove helpful should the player manage to booby trap their sniper nest in one of the buildings in the map.
The key to survival in Crash is constantly be on one’s toes as there is very little room for error across all 3 lanes.
