Should Nuketown Finally Get an Expansion in Call of Duty?

Nuketown. If you’ve played Call of Duty at all—or even just watched someone else—you’ve probably come across its multiplayer mode, which has become one of the franchise’s defining pillars. Since 2007’s Modern Warfare, the formula has been refined, and a big part of that formula? The maps.

While Shipment and Rust might be the immediate go-tos for chaos and close-quarters carnage, there’s one map that’s practically synonymous with the Black Ops subseries: Nuketown. This map has been redesigned, re-released, and re-celebrated across almost every Black Ops title—and even popped up again in Black Ops 6 last year.

But here’s the question: what if Nuketown got a full expansion?

Nuketown’s Legacy: Reliable or Repetitive?

Let’s be honest—Nuketown is iconic, but it’s also predictable. Its tight symmetry, small scale, and stylized setting have made it a staple in the franchise, but for some fans, it’s starting to feel more like a crutch than a highlight.

Yes, it’s had makeovers—holiday themes like Christmas, Halloween, Chinese New Year, and more—but the layout stays the same. At this point, many players know every angle, spawn point, and hidey hole. While it’s always fun to revisit, others are starting to ask: is it time for a change?

Could an Expansion Work?

Here’s where things get tricky. Expanding Nuketown sounds good on paper—imagine turning the small test zone into a fully explorable town, complete with houses, side streets, and wider combat zones. This concept has even been teased before in Black Ops 4’s Alpha Omega map and in Blackout’s Nuketown Island, both of which gave us a peek at what a bigger map  could look like.

Here’s the  downside. An expansion of  the map could change what made it so popular to begin with—the compact chaos. Larger areas mean more mid-range combat, and less predictable engagements leading to potentially slower pacing. So, It risks losing the Nuketown essence that made it so popular with players.

A Risk Worth Taking?

If Call of Duty 2025 really does bring Nuketown back again, expanding it could be a double-edged sword. While it could breathe fresh life into a familiar space, it also runs the risk of alienating longtime fans who love it because of its classic design.

Some fans are calling for change. Others say leave it alone—it’s a classic for a reason. Either way, if Nuketown’s going to evolve, it needs to walk a fine line between innovation and nostalgia. Because one thing’s clear: players notice when a map overstays its welcome—even the iconic ones.