Which CoD is everyone playing right now?

As a passionate Call of Duty gamer and content creator, I closely track player population metrics across new and old CoD titles. Without a doubt, 2022‘s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (MWII) and the free-to-play Warzone 2 are dominating as the most played Call of Duty games at the moment by a massive margin.

Key Statistics on Modern Warfare II & Warzone 2 Players:

• MWII revenue surpassed $1 billion after just 10 days, fastest selling CoD ever (Source)
• Peak player count in March 2023: 488,897 players (Source)
• Average MWII players in March 2023: ~125,843 (Source)
• Warzone 2 averages around 100,000 players daily (Source)

As you can see, engagement is incredibly high especially considering these games released just 5 months ago. For comparison, here‘s a snapshot of other recent Call of Duty player counts:

So while titles like Vanguard still have a small niche audience, MWII and Warzone 2 dominate mainstream attention by far. In my opinion as a long-time fan, this comes down to major improvements in graphics, mechanics, and cross-platform features that make these newest entries incredibly appealing to both casual gamers and die-hard fans like myself.

Unpacking Each Game Mode‘s Popularity & Player Engagement

Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2 encompass various multiplayer game modes that each contribute to their stellar player figures. Here‘s a deeper look:

Modern Warfare II Multiplayer

MWII‘s standard multiplayer delivers the signature fast-paced Call of Duty gunplay across a wide variety of maps and modes offering hundreds of hours of competitive gameplay. Features like the new weapon configuration platform, swimming mechanics, and Battle Maps keep things fresh. An average 125,000 simultaneous players monthly indicates a very healthy playerbase.

Spec Ops

The co-op focused Spec Ops mode sees lower engagement than competitive multiplayer, but provides a great way to team up with friends against AI enemies. Missions continue the MWII campaign story and take place across expansive maps filled with objectives.

DMZ

The new DMZ mode is essentially Call of Duty‘s take on escape-from-Tarkov style extraction shooter gameplay. You raid locations, kill AI enemies, and safely extract with looted weapons/gear. It‘s proven incredibly popular, with over 55,000 concurrent DMZ players confirmed recently.

Warzone 2.0

As a rebranded sequel, Warzone 2.0 had massive shoes to fill following the first game‘s success. But with an all-new map, overhauled looting system, AI enemies, interrogation mechanics, and more – it has captured battle royale fans old and new. The ability to play completely free attracts players hesitant to buy premium CoD releases.

After analyzing player data across modes, it‘s clear that Modern Warfare II caters well to all playstyles: from competitive sweat-fests to co-op PvE and free battle royale mayhem. There‘s something for everyone, leading to staggering engagement.

Why Aren‘t Other Recent CoDs As Popular Now?

Looking at titles like Vanguard and Cold War, there are a few compounding factors that limit their player retention compared to MWII & Warzone 2:

• Lack of support post-launch – minimal content updates
• Perception as "off year" releases between major series titles
• Lack of innovation in mechanics, graphics, etc.
• No integration with Warzone for continued live service play

Essentially, they feel outdated already and fail to capture player interest beyond launch week. This emphasizes just how well MWII and Warzone 2 perform by giving fans so many reasons to stick around and keep playing.

The Call of Duty dev cycle leads fans to focus on the "main" series entry each year while forgetting past releases. For example, Black Ops Cold War was hugely popular when new – but fans moved on to Vanguard, then MWII shortly after. Providing varied and deep content updates helps player retention.

The Bottom Line

If you‘re wondering which Call of Duty game has the highest player count and where most of the community is focused on right now – look no further than Modern Warfare II and the free-to-play Warzone 2.

Their stellar cross-platform features, reinvigorated gameplay systems, stream of post-launch content, and synergy between premium and F2P experiences has made them a monster success. It‘s no surprise they‘ve enraptured old fans and new converts alike.

Other Call of Duty releases still maintain small niche audiences. But MWII and Warzone 2 dominate mainstream mindshare – pulling in over 100,000 players daily even 5 months after launch.

So if you want to squad up and play CoD right now with the biggest community, these two powerhouse titles are clearly where it‘s at! Their future looks bright as the platform tying together new Call of Duty experiences for years to come as well thanks to the strength of this foundation.