Call of Duty: Black Ops 3has been one of the most beloved renditions ofCall of Duty Zombies, and is constantly brought up in conversations regarding Treyarch’s ultimate peak for the mode. It’s easy to understand why, as with the Season Pass and Zombies Chronicles,Black Ops 3truly excels at some of the best maps inCOD Zombieshistory.
Black Ops 3has 14 maps in total, and each of them offers its own unique draw. With returning classics revamped with the eye-popping art style ofBlack Ops 3, and some innovative maps coming from the Season Pass, it’s time to rank every Zombies map inBlack Ops 3to determine the best of the bunch.
Updated on July 20, 2025, by Jake Fillery:The best BO3 Zombies maps are often highly debated among the community, even after the game celebrates a decade on this Earth. With Black Ops 3 Zombies maps celebrating 10 years in 2025, it’s a good time to look back at them all, with the weird, wonderful, and terrifying that proves why Black Ops 3 is considered the best COD Zombies experience of all time.
A Silly and Fun Minigame That Separates Itself From Round-Based Maps
Dead Ops Arcade 2 is truly a wild ride that goes back to a simpler time, when Zombies was just a fun game mode without thecomplex and incredible characters. Instead, Dead Ops Arcade 2 focused on an arcade version ofCOD Zombies, where a birds-eye-view has players unleash Hell into hordes of zombies to fight through a single wave before proceeding into a random room, all while a zombified silverback gorilla chases them.
While Dead Ops Arcade 2 is certainly unique, it’s not something players are going to be coming back to time and again, especially when it’s not the traditional Zombies that players love, and is instead a silly minigame that was only meant to be a bonus easter egg in the Campaign. However, that doesn’t mean this isn’t a charming bonus game mode for those looking to kick back and beat some high scores.
14Nacht Der Untoten
The Original Zombies Map With Condensed Rooms and No Pack-a-Punch
Nacht Der Untoten is where the Zombies crave began, and it’s poetic to see it return forBlack Ops 3. While Nacht is a more complete experience this time thanks to Der Wunderfizz allowing players to purchase Perk-a-Colas, the original horror vibes from the end credits ofCall of Duty: World at Warpresenting Nazi Zombies is something that cannot be replicated.
The challenge of Nacht Der Untoten was to see how far players could survive, but adding crutches and GobbleGums makes it a tad easier, and considering there is just three rooms to roam, there isn’t much to do in terms of the more expansive maps beyond this origin point.
13Verruckt
Verruckt is as creepy as it gets by locking players within an abandoned asylum overrun with zombies. Not only do players start separated in co-op games, but they will need to navigate claustrophobic halls against frantic moving undead if they want a chance at turning on the power to receive great prizes that might keep them alive a touch longer.
Verruckt excels at atmosphere and deserves credit for bringing forth further ideas like the power switch and the Perk-a-Cola Machines, but compared to other maps that feature inBlack Ops 3, it can still be regarded as a tad basic with not much to do past higher rounds.
12Shi No Numa
A Division 9 Swamp With Slowing Waters and Randomized Perks
Shi No Numa builds on Verruckt’s innovation and expands its map size by providing players with plenty of areas to split up and train in without crowding each other. There’s something scary about Shi No Numa’s atmosphere, and being lost in a swamp with no escape, and seeing the 115 meteor that started it all is a haunting treat.
Inside the map itself, players can enjoy a moving Mystery Box, the dangling corpse of Peter McCaine (which used toinsta-kill playersinWorld at Warif they knocked him down), and of course, Hellhound Rounds. Shi No Numa is fun and the ability to walk faster in the swampy areas makes for a better flow, but it doesn’t replicate the original feel.
11Shangri-La
Tight and Deadly Spaces with Special Zombie Variants and Thieving Monkeys
Whether it’s on Mars or on Earth, this fictional jungle paradise is far from what it seems, and the relentless hordes of zombies are going to make a tropical vacation rather difficult. Shangri-La has a lovely design, and the traps that are woven into the map certainly aid in its immersion but alsofalter its difficulty.
With the addition of banshee zombies and napalm zombies, Shangri-La can be a tad frustrating, especially in co-op games where everyone needs to step on specific plates to activate Pack-a-Punch each and every time. The remake of Shangri-La also makes some easter egg steps harder, but the plentiful and tropical areas are nice to explore, even if they are a tad tight to train in, but it’s always worth it for the baby gun.
10The Giant
A Primis Remake of a Beloved Original Which is Perhaps Faithful to a Fault
The Giant’s reveal trailer wastruly something specialand sent ripples across the Zombies community and the original Ultimis timeline. Stories aside, the map felt refreshing in the gorgeous engine ofBlack Ops 3, but it also felt somewhat lacking due to how dark the color contrast is and how when paired againstBlack Ops 3’s maps, players were spoiled into wanting something more expansive.
The Giant was a remake of Der Riese, and while it’s an absolute classic map, there wasn’t a lot added to make this as replayable as some others, especially when it’s reasonably sized forCall of Duty: World at War, but perhaps notBlack Ops 3.
9Ascension
Extremely Accessible for Easy Zombie Training
Ascension is another great classic featuring in Zombies Chronicles, bringing back the immaculate vibes and easy training areas with the updated videos and contrast it deserves. Ascension is one of the easier maps of the series and has plenty of great training spots for new players to familiarize themselves with the winning meta, and it also features the first main quest of the series.
New Perks also make their way to Ascension, but the map receives a deduction in points for having a remake without the beloved PhD Flopper. The replacement of Dog Rounds with Monkey Rounds is frustrating, as players need to constantly run back and forth to Perk Machines to stop Monkeys from stealing them, but outside of that, it’s an easy round to get to high numbers on.
8Kino der Toten
Kino Der Toten was many players' first foray intoCall of Duty Zombiesdue to its release alongsideCall of Duty: Black Ops. It’s a fan-favorite map that has plenty of avenues to explore and features the brilliant wonder weapon, the Thunder Gun that makes training hordes so much easier. In terms of map design, Kino Der Toten is an utter classic that shows that simplicity is sometimes the way forward.
Where Kino struggles is in its Nova Six Crawlers, which will often annoy with their low-to-the-ground walks and their slowing gas when killed. Like maps before it, Kino is a tad small when compared to theBlack Ops 3originals, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an epic map.
7Moon
Frustrating Challenges of Oxygen and Excavators Aid the Sci-Fi Charm
Starting out next to Pack-a-Punch in Groom Lake seems like a great idea, but as the overwhelminghordes of undead and hellhoundscontinue to spawn in, it’s time to escape to the teleporter and end up on Griffin Station on the Moon. Moon is anything but simple and extremely brilliant in its design and its incredible main quest for Richtofen’s Grand Scheme that sees a change of zombie leadership, all Perks, and the destruction of Earth.
Outside of the main quest, Moon is a lot of fun, especially with the unpredictable and hard-moving low-gravity mechanics and the chasing of the zombie astronaut. Moon’s expansive areas are intimidating but fun, yet the constant need to watch out for the Hacker Device to stop the excavators from destroying certain areas can really slow down the pace of the game and ruin high round runs.
6Zetsubou No Shima
Overwhelming Mechanics and Tormenting Thrashers Complicate a Creepy Map
Zetsubou No Shima is a return to the dreary swampy atmospheres that was last seen with Shi No Numa, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. Zetsubou has perhaps a little too much going on with its seed mechanic, a multitude of irradiated waters, challenges, and those dreaded Thrashers that really throw a spanner in the works when it comes to training.
For new players, Zetsubou feels like a chore list of things that need to be done to set up, but once players actually are set up, they have an easier time ahead. The atmosphere is great, as are the horror themes of Division 9, but it’s a tad forgettable due to being squished between the release of Der Eisendrache and Gorod Krovi.
