How Call Of Duty And Battlefield Ended Up On The Same Battlefield In 2025

Call of Duty and Battlefield remain two of the most recognisable names in competitive shooters, and the rivalry between them has defined much of the genre’s direction over the last twenty years. This year places them closer than ever, with both Black Ops 7 and Battlefield 6 built around the same near-future warzones, similar match structures, and overlapping ideas about scale and pacing. The shift has narrowed a gap that once stood at the centre of their identities. The change is also significant enough to frame 2025 as the first real head-to-head moment the series have shared in more than a decade, one shaped by shared goals rather than opposed philosophies. The result is a moment worth examining for anyone tracking how shooters evolve. And that is where the conversation around Call of Duty and Battlefield begins.

Ford James at Polygon spells out how closely the two franchises now sit. His review coverage pointed out that the trademark differences that once separated both series have thinned with each passing generation, leaving them hunting for the same player in the same space. The observation captures a broader trend visible across both games: a move toward hybrid forms of warfare where small-team firefights and vehicle-driven scale now coexist in similar configurations. That shift is not cosmetic. It reflects how both studios think about the modern shooter, and how audiences shape the expectations that drive design.

Call of Duty built its reputation on tight 6v6 combat across modestly sized maps. It carried that identity for years with only occasional experiments in scale. Battlefield, meanwhile, lived on the other end of the spectrum: sprawling 32v32 battles filled with armour columns, air power, and shifting fronts. That contrast held until 2019’s Modern Warfare reintroduced a larger mode with Ground War, which brought sixty-plus players together with the help of vehicles and wide arenas. In Black Ops 7, the label has changed, but the intent remains. Skirmish now fills the same space Ground War occupied, even if its 20v20 cap sits below its predecessor’s size. The feel, though, lines up: broader angles, more open terrain, and the sense that firefights belong to clusters rather than individuals.

Battlefield’s side of the convergence comes from the opposite direction. The series still carries its large-scale “All-Out Warfare” identity, but Battlefield 6 adds infantry-focused playlists that trim the battlefield down to small sections of those massive maps. Those CQB modes never threaten the scale-driven core, yet they form a deliberate bridge toward Call of Duty’s faster rhythm. They are a concession, but also a correction after Battlefield 2042’s difficult launch. The studio used the four-year gap to rebuild trust and tighten what players expect from Battlefield. The smoother Battlefield 6 launch demonstrates that approach in clear detail. Portal’s presence strengthens it further by giving players an outlet for more specific rulesets and experiments that keep the ecosystem from going stale.

Viewed side by side, the similarities now outweigh the contrasts in multiplayer. Both games split their identities between quick, focused firefights and open spaces filled with vehicles. Both rely on a mix of short-range pressure and long-range suppression. Both occupy the same pace, even if Call of Duty maintains a cleaner, sharper gunfeel while Battlefield builds its identity around a heavier, more grounded motion. The one feature that still creates separation is destruction. Battlefield’s ability to tear down cover, punch holes through walls, and flatten entire strongholds remains unmatched. It gives the series a physical edge that shifts matches in ways Call of Duty cannot reproduce. That distinction remains genuine, yet its influence is limited to moments rather than the broader shape of play.

The campaigns show a different set of challenges, neither flattering. Black Ops 7 abandons what gave Black Ops 6 its strength as a single-player experience. It replaces defined missions and a cohesive arc with a co-op structure that accepts solo play but never embraces it. Little ties the narrative together beyond a steady line of escalating firefights. The occasional boss fight provides a brief burst of personality, but the campaign lands without weight or purpose. Even its old incentive — unlocking Endgame — no longer exists, since the mode opens for everyone from the start.

Battlefield 6 gains a point by offering a traditional single-player path, yet it carries its own issues. The campaign struggles to build the emotional weight it reaches for, introducing characters with almost no foundation and treating their fates as crucial turns. The story moves from one extreme backdrop to another with little connective tissue, almost like a tour stitched together for spectacle rather than coherence. Surprisingly, it also sidesteps aerial combat entirely, even though Battlefield campaigns have delivered some of their standout missions in the sky. The result is serviceable but thin, more of a companion piece to multiplayer than a narrative pillar.

Outside the two main modes, both series pursue their usual extras. Black Ops 7 leans on Zombies and Endgame. Zombies remains the most reliable pull for long-term fans, offering a larger map, elaborate Easter egg chains, and the kind of weapons and pace that keep the mode upright even when the campaign falters. Endgame mixes elements from battle royale and past extraction-style modes, folding them into an open environment dotted with objectives and hostile pockets. It fits Call of Duty’s versatility, yet its competition is strong, and the mode faces a crowded field of similar ideas refined by other studios.

Battlefield’s extra feature sits in Portal, which continues to act as a creation tool and experimentation hub. It cannot replicate the polish of Call of Duty’s Zombies, yet it gives players space to build modes that extend the game’s lifespan beyond the standard rotation. Portal has started to pick up traction after Battlefield 6’s smoother launch re-established trust, and it will likely remain the glue that holds the game together through the years until EA decides on a sequel.

The broader picture is no longer about contrast. Call of Duty and Battlefield now move along parallel lines rather than diverging ones. Battlefield 6 feels renewed because the series needed a clean slate after 2042’s issues. Black Ops 7, arriving only a year after Black Ops 6, sits inside a tighter cycle that leaves less room to break habits. Yet both games work well enough to sustain their respective communities. For the first time in a long while, choosing one over the other says more about personal preference than design philosophy.

Battlefield 6 has already cleared 6.5 million copies in its first few days on sale, according to Alinea Analytics. The rapid climb places it ahead of nine earlier entries and signals a sharp commercial rebound for the series after years of uneven releases.