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Call of Duty®: Black Ops III

50 Games like Call of Duty®: Black Ops III that you should try

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Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is hard to replace: few games combine shooting mechanics, dark, oppressive atmosphere and melee combat in quite the same way. The NextGameLike team compared Call of Duty®: Black Ops III against over 6,700 titles across 14 gameplay attributes and found 50 genuine alternatives — not generic genre suggestions. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, Call of Duty: Vanguard and Ready or Not lead the list, with Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War reaching a 95/100 similarity score. Every game here is ranked by how closely it replicates what makes Call of Duty®: Black Ops III special.

NextGameLike87/ 100

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GenreShooterSubgenreFPSSub-subgenreTactical FPS
Tags
DarkNarrativeMultiplayerSolo
Year 2010Dev Raven Software

Quick answer

The closest game to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War — scoring 95/100 on our similarity scale. Call of Duty: Vanguard and Ready or Not follow close behind.

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Top games similar to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III

50 similar games foundUpdated May 2026

Handpicked by our similarity algorithm, these are the titles with the highest gameplay match to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III. Each one has been evaluated across 14 real attributes — from combat style and progression mechanics to world structure and visual perspective — so every recommendation is based on how the game actually plays, not just its genre label.

1

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War

95
NGL78
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Closest overall match
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opOnlineMeleeTacticalRangedDarkNarrativeHorrorHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2020Dev Treyarch · ActivisionOn Xbox · PS4 · PC

What brings it close to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting, and the two track each other on genre, combat and tone. The common ground extends to single-player focus and a first-person view. It sets itself apart with offline play.

Released 10 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Setting100Visuals100Game mode71
2

Call of Duty: Vanguard

95
NGL70
Call of Duty: Vanguard
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opOnlineMeleeTacticalRangedDarkNarrativeHorrorHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2021Dev Sledgehammer Games · ActivisionOn Xbox · PS4 · PC

What brings it close to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting, and the two track each other on genre, combat and tone. To that it adds single-player focus and a first-person view. They part company on game mode: this one brings offline play.

Released 11 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Setting100Visuals100Game mode69
3

Ready or Not

92
NGL81
Ready or Not
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opTacticalRangedMeleeDarkNarrativeHorrorFirst Person
Year 2023Dev VOID InteractivePlaytime ~6hOn PC

It shares the essentials of what Call of Duty®: Black Ops III does: dark, oppressive atmosphere, tactical combat and horror setting. To that it adds multiplayer gameplay and a first-person view. They part company on setting: this one brings a contemporary setting.

Released 13 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Visuals100Game mode88Setting53
4

Call of Duty: Black Ops II

90
NGL84
Call of Duty: Black Ops II
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
MultiplayerSoloCo-opOnlineMeleeTacticalNarrativeDarkHorrorHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2012Dev Treyarch · ActivisionOn PlayStation 3 · PC

What carries over from Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is strong narrative focus, melee combat and horror setting. The common ground extends to co-op play and a first-person view. It sets itself apart with survival mechanics and a sci-fi setting.

Genre100Tone100Visuals100Game mode79Setting77Combat73
5

Call of Duty: World at War

88
NGL88
Call of Duty: World at War
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opOnlineTacticalMeleeDarkHorrorHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2008Dev Treyarch · ActivisionOn PlayStation 3 · PC

What brings it close to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is dark, oppressive atmosphere, tactical combat and horror setting, and the two track each other on genre, setting and visuals. Both also lean on a first-person view and single-player focus. The distance is in combat — its own ground is stealth mechanics.

Genre100Setting100Visuals100Tone91Game mode79Combat58
6

Return to Castle Wolfenstein

87
NGL87
Return to Castle Wolfenstein
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerRangedMeleeTacticalDarkNarrativeHistoricalHorrorFirst Person
Year 2001Dev Nerve Software · Bethesda SoftworksPlaytime ~1hOn PC · PS · Apple Macintosh

With Call of Duty®: Black Ops III it shares dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and historical setting. The common ground extends to a first-person view and single-player focus. It sets itself apart with horror tension and stealth mechanics.

It predates Call of Duty®: Black Ops III by 9 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Tone100Visuals100Combat84Setting73Game mode72
7

PAYDAY 2

87
NGL78
PAYDAY 2
Closest on game mode
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
Co-opSoloMultiplayerOnlineTacticalMeleeRangedFirst Person
Year 2013Dev 505 GamesPlaytime ~9hOn PC · Xbox · Linux

What carries over from Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is tactical combat, co-op play and a first-person view. Its own ground is deep RPG systems and stealth mechanics.

Released 3 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Game mode100Visuals100Combat82
8

Black Squad

93
NGL55
Black Squad
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
MultiplayerOnlineSoloCo-opRangedMeleeTacticalDarkHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2017Dev NS STUDIO · NEOWIZPlaytime ~1hOn PC

If Call of Duty®: Black Ops III worked for you because of dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and historical setting, the same is here. The common ground extends to single-player focus and a first-person view. Where the two diverge is setting: PvP competition and free-to-play access.

Released 7 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Visuals100Game mode91Tone84Setting51
9

Black Mesa

84
NGL90
Black Mesa
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerRangedMeleeTacticalNarrativeDarkHorrorFirst Person
Year 2020Dev Crowbar CollectivePlaytime ~6hOn PC · Linux

If Call of Duty®: Black Ops III worked for you because of strong narrative focus, ranged combat and horror setting, the same is here. To that it adds single-player focus and a first-person view. They part company on setting: this one brings a sci-fi setting.

Released 10 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Visuals100Game mode72Setting51
10

Call of Duty: WWII

87
NGL73
Call of Duty: WWII
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opTacticalMeleeDarkNarrativeHistoricalHorrorFirst Person
Year 2017Dev Sledgehammer Games · ActivisionOn PS4 · PC · Xbox

It shares the essentials of what Call of Duty®: Black Ops III does: dark, oppressive atmosphere, tactical combat and historical setting. To that it adds co-op play and a first-person view. They part company on game mode: this one brings offline play.

Released 7 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Tone100Setting100Visuals100Combat74Game mode67
11

Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2

85
NGL80
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opOnlineTacticalMeleeRangedFirst Person
Year 2008Dev Ubisoft · Ubisoft EntertainmentPlaytime ~3hOn PC · PS · Xbox

The thread back to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III runs through tactical combat, single-player focus and a first-person view. Its own ground is stealth mechanics and offline play.

Genre100Combat94Visuals91Game mode79
12

War Thunder

88
NGL67
War Thunder
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
MultiplayerSoloCo-opOnlineTacticalMeleeRangedHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2013Dev Gaijin EntertainmentPlaytime ~6hOn PC · PS · Xbox

On paper it is what Call of Duty®: Black Ops III is — tactical combat, historical setting and multiplayer gameplay — though the resemblance is mostly at that level. Both also lean on a first-person view. The distance is in setting and visuals — its own ground is a contemporary setting and a third-person camera.

Released 3 years after Call of Duty®: Black Ops III.

Genre100Combat100Game mode89Visuals63Setting38
13

NecroVision

88
NGL60
NecroVision
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerMeleeRangedTacticalDarkNarrativeHorrorHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2009Dev The Farm 51 · 1C-SoftClubPlaytime ~1hOn PC

If Call of Duty®: Black Ops III worked for you because of dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting, the same is here. To that it adds single-player focus and a first-person view. Its own ground is horror tension and fantasy world.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Visuals100Game mode72Setting70
14

STAR WARS™ Republic Commando™

82
NGL85
STAR WARS™ Republic Commando™
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerCo-opMeleeRangedTacticalNarrativeHistoricalFirst Person
Year 2005Dev LucasArts Entertainment · Disney InteractivePlaytime ~1hOn PC · PS · Xbox

It comes from the same genre as Call of Duty®: Black Ops III and shares strong narrative focus, melee combat and historical setting. The common ground extends to single-player focus and a first-person view. Where the two diverge is setting and tone: a sci-fi setting.

Genre100Combat100Visuals100Game mode85Tone39Setting27
15

Half-Life: Opposing Force

82
NGL85
Half-Life: Opposing Force
ShooterFPSTactical FPS
SoloMultiplayerRangedTacticalMeleeNarrativeDarkHorrorFirst Person
Year 1999Dev Gearbox Software · ValvePlaytime ~3hOn PC · Apple Macintosh · Linux

If Call of Duty®: Black Ops III worked for you because of strong narrative focus, ranged combat and horror setting, the same is here. The common ground extends to single-player focus and a first-person view. Where the two diverge is setting and game mode: a sci-fi setting and PvP competition.

It predates Call of Duty®: Black Ops III by 11 years, with what that implies technically.

Genre100Combat100Tone100Visuals100Game mode58Setting52

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Found one on the list you already love? Open its own list: the games that play most like it, ranked, with the reason for each.

Explore games similar to Call of Duty®: Black Ops III by category

If Call of Duty®: Black Ops III left you wanting more, this is where you narrow it down. Was it the dark or the narrative that hooked you? There is a list of just that. And if you play on PS5, PlayStation and Xbox, filter by platform and skip the games you could not play anyway.

Rankings in the same genre

Sometimes what you want is not a Call of Duty®: Black Ops III look-alike but simply the best Tactical FPS Games there are. That is what these rankings are for: no comparison to anything, just the highest-rated games. And if you feel like widening the net, the Shooter Games ranking is a good way to run into something you were not expecting.