STORY
Extinction story and Cryptids
A side plot told across five maps. The Ancestors direct the Cryptids. The human program studying the remains is Nightfall.
From my notes. Wikipedia's Extinction plot is the spine I used. Where a guide adds a motive the Ancestors never state, I left it out. The sequence of maps is the part I can defend.
What wakes them
After the ODIN strike, a stray hit on Caldera Peak in Colorado wakes Cryptids living underground. The Ancestors direct them. Task Force Spectre responds. The Nightfall program, associated with David Archer, studies what is recovered.
Samantha Cross is taken over by the Ancestors during that research. CIF Team One is the squad the later maps follow.
Map by map
Point of Contact is the town at Caldera Peak. Nightfall is the Alaska facility, 14 weeks later, and introduces the Breeder. Mayday is the ship Stormbreaker, 26 days after Nightfall, and the boss is the Kraken.
Awakening is the Ancestor Ark, 36 hours after Mayday, and the objective is the Cortex. Exodus is the launch site, three months later. Six generators charge the Cortex and Medusa fires. I am not claiming a sequel continues past that shot.
Questions
Are Cryptids zombies?
No. They are the creatures in Extinction, directed by the Ancestors.
Who is Samantha Cross?
A researcher on the Nightfall program who comes under Ancestor control.
Does the story end on Exodus?
The mode's last map fires Medusa. No official Extinction sequel is cited in the sources used here.
Keep reading
Looking for the Modern Warfare character? See Simon "Ghost" Riley and Ghost vs Ghosts.
Sources checked 23 October 2026
Updated .