I'm sure by now most users on this wiki have already created their own blog posts discussing their five favorite zombie maps, but after a huge resurgence of interest for Call of Duty Zombies, I got inspired to make a blog discussing my five favorite zombie maps. So before I begin I wanted to let everyone know that honorable mentions will come last, also I won't be covering easter eggs quests (except for songs), as in the words of Jr rizzo "they don't make or break a map for me". And these are all Treyarch maps. So without further ado let's begin.
Number Five Shi No Numa
To start off our list we have Shi No Numa, the best and only (unfortunately) World at War map on this list. What I enjoy most about this map is the layout. The map consists of a large hut with four outer areas that contain box spawns and perk drinks. The new features such as the Wunderwaffe DG-2, Flogger, Hellhounds, and the Ultimis crew are great additions to the map. The Easter Egg Song is the definition of "kick-ass". And the swampy environment is a unique setting that we never saw again until Zetsubou No Shima. The reason why I ranked it at number five was that it lacked a lot of depth that the future maps would eventually possess. Overall with a fun layout, great new features, and unique setting make it a worthy pick for this list.
Number Four Moon
Moon was the finale to Call of Duty: Black Ops's Zombies mode, and it didn't disappoint. The map brings in many great new additions such as the Wave Gun, Anti-Gravity, and Hacker. All of these things are fun, with the Wave Gun being the best of them all. The layout is very great, it consists of Area 51, a large starting area, two tunnels, a huge power room, the laboratories, an outside location with a teleporter that takes you back to Area 51, and of course the Bio Dome. The Bio Dome is the coolest and most fun area in the map, it's great for training and the jump pads are both fun and useful for getting out of sticky situations. The only issue I could see with the jump pads are if you landed on a hard surface without Juggernog and/or no Anti-Gravity. The aforementioned Area 51 serves as a fun challenge to see how far you can survive, and the tension when the sirens go off is very cool. The only issue I have with this is that because zombies hit way faster in Black Ops III, the remastered version is unfair compared to it's Black Ops I counterpart. The reason why I place it at number four is that while it's fun, it's undermined by a couple flaws. The Astronaut Zombies don't feel like a real threat, and when they do get a chance to attack you, they take away one of your perks, this is especially problematic when you've got Juggernog, and while the Black Ops I version isn't nearly as bad, the Black Ops III version can be very obnoxious given the previously mentioned fact that zombies hit way too fast. Also, zombies can still attack you when in the clutches of an Astronaut Zombie, great job Treyarch. The two other issues are the excavators and teleporting crawlers. I don't like how an excavator can block your path while digging a tunnel, this is even more of an issue when they're digging both tunnels and you don't have the hacker to reverse this effect and you just so happen to be in the starting room. And while I have no issues with the Crawler Zombies, given them the ability to teleport makes them more of an annoyance than a fun challenge. Though overall Moon is still a wonderful map with great new features and layout, however, its wonderfulness can get undermined by its flaws.
Number Three Ascension
At our number three spot, we have Ascension. Included in the First Strike DLC Map Pack for Black Ops I and Zombies Chronicles for Black Ops III, Ascension takes place at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, right off the bat the map sounds awesome, but with that comes the great new features such as the Lunar Landers, New Perks, New Wonder Weapons, and the Rocket Takeoff. The map brings back the illustrious Thundergun, and features an awesome new Easter Egg Song, that's even better than The One from Shi No Numa. What's better than badass? Abracadavre that's what! (sorry for my poor humor). The layout is fantastic, it's a medium sized layout consisting of the main facility and multiple outside locations, both narrow and wide. While most people aren't big fans of it (at least I think), I like the fact that the map starts out in all black and white and regains all color once the power is activated, it's unique and would've loved to have seen it return in the succeeding Black Ops I map. Despite all the positives though, there is but one flaw, and that is the Space Monkeys. These new enemies have their own signature rounds much like the Hellhounds and Pentagon Thief, but here's the kicker, they have the ability to steal your perks. They will run towards any machine used by the player and start attacking them, the players only have a limited amount of time to stop them, if you don't stop them in time you lose your perk that corresponds to the machine they attacked, this is worse in solo play as they can attack Quick Revive, and because you can only purchase it three times per match, it's going to suck when you lose your last Quick Revive because of them. Fortunately, this was remedied in Black Ops III with the inclusion of GobbleGums and the Der Wunderfizz Machine, and while you can just solely defend Quick Revive, it's going to suck losing all your other perks given you'll have to regain the money to buy them, and it' takes awhile to get the sufficient amount of money to buy some of these perks in Black Ops I, as your money increase is much slower, luckily this was also fixed in Black Ops III with the increased pace of money cumulation. To sum it up Ascension is an awesome map with just one game ruining flaw.
Number Two Der Eisendrache
Der Eisendrache would kick off Call of Duty: Black Ops III's Zombies DLC season, and it started it off with a blast. The map brings in amazing new features such as the Wrath of the Ancients (and it's upgraded counterparts), the Ragnarok DG-4, the Wunderspheres, and the Death Ray. The map also brings back the Rocket Shield and Anti-Gravity mechanic from Moon. The map's layout is well crafted, just like Ascension it's a medium sized layout that's easy to navigate. This map appeals to both players who enjoy the complex easter eggs of Zombies and those who enjoy the simplistic wave defense, and while I'm not a big fan of it, but the easier Pack-a-Punch setup is great for new players and/or those who just want a more casual time. The snowy castle setting is also a great setting, the castle itself looks gorgeous for a Zombies map. This could've been my number one spot, but it's undermined by two problems. The faster hitting zombies and the return of the Panzersoldats. The faster-hitting zombies are a problem with Black Ops III in-general, but overall they just hurt the map. The Panzersoldats as mentioned are also an issue. While they served as a nice new challenge in Origins, in Der Eisendrache they're more of a nuisance than a fun challenge. The map is to close-quarters for them and their shock charges were unnecessary, while Origins's trenches were very tight, the map also had No Man's Land which allowed you take advantage of the space during a fight with a Panzersoldat. In summary, Der Eisendrache is a wonderful map to kick of the DLC season for Zombies in Black Ops III, but also has a couple flaws that undermine (god I'm using that word a lot) the experience.
Number One Mob of the Dead
Mob of the Dead is the best Zombies map of all time, in my opinion, no map can top this one, sure Der Eisendrache had all the pieces to beat it, but as mentioned the faster-hitting zombies and Panzersoldats are the two things that kept it from beating this map. As you already know Mob of the Dead is set on Alcatraz Island, and has you play as four mobsters Billy Handsome (the best), Salvatore "Sal" DeLuca, Albert "Weasel" Arlington, and Michael "Finn" O'Leary. All are wonderful characters, with Billy being as mentioned the best of the four. The map brings in many new features; Five Brand Spanking New Wonder Weapons, a solid new boss zombie, Afterlife mode, an actual soundtrack, and of course the plane quest. It features two new unique easter egg songs, Soundgarden's Rusty Cage (covered by the legendary/late Johnny Cash), and Kevin Sherwood's Where Are We Going (sung by the talented Malukah). The aforementioned Alcatraz setting is an awesome and unique (I'm also using this word a lot too) location, especially the prison, with the tight and narrow cell blocks along with the hanging bodies ubiquitously placed around the map. The soundtrack that was also aforementioned is beautiful and really sets the tone for the map. The only flaw this map has is the expensive doors, but compared to the flaws the previous maps had, this is more tolerable. Overall with the great new cast, awesome new features, and wonderful setting and tone, Mob of the Dead is the greatest zombies map of all time in my opinion, and worthy of my number one spot.
Honorable Mentions
Der Riese/The Giant
While it didn't make the list Der Riese/The Giant is still an amazing map that introduced many great new features; the Pack-a-Punch Machine, Monkey Bombs, Bowie Knife, Teleporters, and more. The Black Ops III version is the best with the combinations of the wonderful features and extremely beautiful environment.
Origins
Just like Der Riese/The Giant Origins is an amazing map. It introduced many new features; the Elemental Staffs, the Der Wunderfizz Machine, the Giant Robots (which can be annoying at times, but are still awesome), Three New zombie types, the Mark IV Tank, the Primis version of the Ultimis crew, and more. But the maps that made it on the list are better in my opinion.
Conclusion
So there you have it my top five Call of Duty Zombies maps of all time. Let me know what you guys think in the comments below, and tell me what is your five favorite Zombies maps of all time. Goodbye!