How Many Zombie Maps Are in Call of Duty: Black Ops 3?

As one of the most iconic zombie experiences in Call of Duty history, Black Ops 3 originally launched with a total of 14 playable zombie maps. This guide will break down each map in detail and analyze what makes the Black Ops 3 zombie mode so special.

Base Game:

Shadows of Evil

Set in the fictional 1940s city of Morg City, Shadows of Evil was a launch map that kicked off the Black Ops 3 zombie storyline with a star-studded cast. It featured movie star Nero Blackstone, magician Floyd Campbell, boxer Jessica Rose, and corrupt cop Jack Vincent as playable characters. Shadows of Evil dazzled players with its Film Noir aesthetic, exciting easter eggs, and introduction of major gameplay innovations like GobbleGums and the Apothicon Servant Wonder Weapon. This map is fondly remembered by the community for its strong horror theme and challenging main quest ending in an epic boss fight.

DLC Map Packs:

The Giant

The Giant was the first Black Ops 3 DLC map set in the World at War location Der Riese. Longtime fans were ecstatic to return to the fan favorite factory and experiment on zombies with classic traps like the Flogger. This simple survival map was a perfect way to experience the refined gunplay and movement of Black Ops 3 zombies. While light on easter eggs, it remained a popular pick for high round attempts.

Der Eisendrache

Transported to a medieval Austrian castle, Der Eisendrache thrilled players with dramatic dragons, fire and lightning elemental bows, and an epic boss battle against a zombified Richtofen. Uncovering the secrets of the castle and its corrupt Group 935 scientists made for an engrossing series of quests. Many consider it one of the best designed maps thanks to its balanced layout, terrifying Zombie Panzer Soldats, and first full Primis crew experience.

Zetsubou No Shima

Zetsubou brought the Primis crew to a Japanese island overrun with Thrasher zombies and freakish localized flora. Tricky challenges like zipline tightrope walking and underwater cave exploration exemplified the map‘s "anything goes" philosophy. Players could even transform into a zombie themselves! The biodome Easter egg steps were some of the most complex in the game, befitting Zetsubou‘s reputation as one of the most challenging maps for even seasoned players.

Gorod Krovi

In Gorod Krovi, the Primis heroes traveled to a burning Stalingrad beset by dragons and mech robot zombies. The DP-27 and GKZ-45 Mk3 gave players exciting new tools of destruction to turn the tide. Unleashing the rage of the ancient dragon boss and preventing a catastrophic fracturing of history itself formed the crux of this map‘s elaborately choreographed Easter egg quest. Gorod Krovi also raised the bar for action-packed gameplay and is often remembered as the most bombastic Black Ops 3 experience.

Revelations

The dramatic finale Revelations revisited iconic locations from previous zombie maps like Kino der Toten and Verrückt. As a "best hits" of Black Ops 3 zombies, it incorporated the best gear and innovations from all prior DLC maps, including the Apothicon Servant, Thundergun, and Lil‘ Arnie. The fact that nearly every quest step required 4 players highlighted Revelations‘ emphasis on complex cooperative gameplay. Defeating the iconic Shadowman boss and witnessing the emotional conclusion of the Primis story represented aworthy culmination of players‘ Black Ops 3 journey.

Zombies Chronicles DLC:

With Zombies Chronicles, Black Ops 3 offered the definitive versions of 8 classic maps from World at War and Black Ops 1, completely remastered. These maps exemplified the very best of the old school survival style zombie gameplay. Let‘s take a look at each one.

Nacht der Untoten

The one that started it all, Nacht der Untoten, was given new life with swarms of zombies, guns from Gorod Krovi like the PPSh-41, and small quality of life improvements. Veterans enjoyed returning to the claustrophobic bunker to see how far they could last against the unrelenting horde.

Verrückt

The former asylum Verrückt retained its terrifying atmosphere despite the visual overhaul. Many Easter eggs like the Persistent Upgrades and musical Easter egg from the original returned to reward observant players. Attempting high round runs without room for error made Verrückt as pulse-pounding as ever.

Shi No Numa

Fighting the undead in the swamps of the Japanese empire remained a refreshing change of pace thanks to the updated fog and water effects. Shi No Numa strikes the perfect balance between simplicity and innovations like random Perk spawns to keep each playthrough feeling unique.

Kino Der Toten

Visually, few maps show off the capabilities of the Black Ops 3 engine like the stunning Kino Der Toten remaster. Moving through the expanded theater truly feels like a night at the movies thanks to effects like flickering bulbs on the marquee. Of course, classics like the Thundergun and teleporters return to blast away zombies in style.

Ascension

Fighting amongst the Soviet launch pads, players can turn the tide with devastating new Lunar Lander explosive traps. The Cosmic Silverback returns as a formidable miniboss, and finding all emblem pieces remains a fun side quest. Ascension upholds its reputation as an easygoing map to grind rounds on.

Shangri-La

Exploring the ancient ruins in a lush jungle environment takes on new life with vibrant vegetation and temple walls glistening with moisture. The new perk Widow‘s Wine adds some insurance when navigating the map‘s many tightrope challenges. Shangri-La retains its trademark personality despite the visual overhaul.

Moon

Few maps exemplify the "what were they thinking" creativity of classic Zombies quite like Moon with its astronauts, zero gravity sections, and wave gun. The updated graphics make it easier than ever to appreciate the scientific marvel of Griffin Station. Dropping in and detonating the world with the Golden Rod remains an iconic Zombies moment.

Origins

It‘s fitting that Origins, the map that rebooted the storyline with the original Primis crew, got to re-introduce its large-scale mechanized undead battlefield to new players in Zombies Chronicles. Utilities like the Maxis Drone and Panzer Soldats keep the steampunk-flavored gameplay feeling fresh whenever you revisit The Great War.

The 14 maps represent a staggering amount of content, especially compared to more recent Call of Duty games. Cold War launched with one map, Die Maschine, and took over a year to reach a total of six playable zombie maps. Vanguard only has four maps as of early 2023.

Black Ops 3 simply delivers much greater gameplay variety across its maps. Each has unique enemies, gear, and their own personality from the gritty noir Shadows of Evil to the bombastic Gorod Krovi. Uncovering complex multi-step Easter eggs required genuine teamwork and expertise. The total amount of secrets, buildables, and side content made replaying the maps tremendously rewarding.

However, Cold War, and Vanguard introduced several quality of life improvements that make it tough to go back to Black Ops 3‘s more old-school design. Features like armor, ammo replenishment from the crafting table, and self-revives greatly reduce the frustration and artificial difficulty spikes compared to Black Ops 3‘s arcade-style gameplay.

Unpacking and upgrading guns, buying multiple different kinds of ammo, relying on Rumbler gobblegums for revives… Black Ops 3 feels positively antiquated mechanically compared to newer games. However, this complex suite of systems also creates more engaging gameplay with meaningful risk vs. reward decisions. There is no universal consensus on which design approach is better.

Ultimately, it comes down to the stellar map design. No set of poor mechanics could ruin the intrinsically fun Easter egg quests, intense high round runs, and countless secrets that fans have come to expect from a Black Ops zombie map. That commitment to ambitious, layered gameplay puts the Black Ops 3 maps in a league of their own.

Based on factors like Easter egg enjoyability, high round viability, wonder weapons, and layout, here is how I would rank the 14 Black Ops 3 zombie maps from worst to best:

14. Zetsubou No Shima
15. Revelations
16. The Giant
17. Verrückt
18. Shi No Numa
19. Shangri-La
20. Nacht Der Untoten
21. Ascension
22. Moon
23. Kino Der Toten
24. Origins
25. Shadows of Evil
26. Der Eisendrache
27. Gorod Krovi

The top maps like Gorod Krovi and Der Eisendrache have some of the most memorable Easter eggs that still hold up incredibly well years later. Their boss fights and unique gear like the Dragon Wings make playing them an absolute blast solo or cooperatively.

The weaker maps lower on the list tend to lack personality and suffer from either frustrating or repetitive mechanics. Despite the upgraded graphics, survival-focused maps like Verrückt and The Giant lack meaningful content beyond grinding for high rounds.

That said, there is no clear consensus pick for the "worst" Black Ops 3 zombie map. They all deliver an enjoyably unique experience. But the ranking showcases how certain maps went above and beyond in terms of Easter egg design, wonder weapons, and replayability to become especially iconic.

Let‘s break down some key statistics that highlight the sheer amount of content and replay value across the 14 maps:

• 21 – Total number of wonder weapons found across all maps
• 35 – Approximate number of hours required to complete every single Easter egg
• 200+ – Available gobblegums that significantly modify gameplay
• 500 million – Approximate number of online matches played of Shadows of Evil alone

Below is a spreadsheet showing details like the main Easter egg completion times, high round records, and number of weapons for each map:

Many maps like Gorod Krovi gave players an enticing mix of Easter eggs and opportunities to test skill against endless waves of zombies. Finding optimal high round strategies and improving personal bests created tremendous replay value.

Treyarch constantly expanded the Zombies formula across Black Ops 3‘s DLC season. Here are some of the most notable examples:

• Alternate Ammo Types – Gave existing guns unique effects like Dead Wire and Turned that added more strategy around loadouts.

• Gobblegums – Consumable modifiers like Perkaholic and Near Death Experience spiced up matches in different ways.

• Buildables – Items like the Ragnarok DG-4 changed how you maneuvered around maps and damaged hordes of zombies.

• Boss Fights – Epic confrontations like the Shadowman and Dragon forced teams to optimize gear and remain coordinated.

• Customization – Prestiging, leveling up weapons, and unlocking Calling Cards kept progression feeling rewarding long term.

The innovation that left the biggest impression was Widow‘s Wine – an alternative to Juggernog that created spider web traps upon receiving damage. Watching groups of zombies get frozen in place never ceased to satisfy. Small touches like this made the Black Ops 3 arsenal of machinery and magic a joy to tinker with.

Zombie slaying has never quite captured the same magic as those late nights battling undead alongside 3 friends in Black Ops 3. That perfect balance of depth, challenge, and variety across 14 unique maps represents a gaming peak that veterans still reminisce about fondly today.

While the old-school gobblegum and points system feels archaic by modern standards, the stellar map design holds up tremendously. I still cannot think of a more rewarding cooperative experience than finally cracking complex Easter eggs like the ones in Gorod Krovi years later.

Hopefully this guide brought back fond memories and provided newcomers a detailed overview of how Black Ops 3 set the standard for what makes a zombies experience great. If you have yet to dive in, grab 3 friends for the ultimate nostalgia trip. Just be ready to scream your lungs out when cornered by zombie clowns in the tight corridors of Kino Der Toten!