Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4: What to Know

This is a Preview, not a review. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has not been released, and we have not played it. This page is built from official announcements, the August beta (which included multiplayer, Warzone and one campaign mission), developer interviews, PC requirement reports and published impressions, and we say where sources disagree. See How We Review for how Previews differ from Reviews on this site.

Why this release matters

Call of Duty comes out every year, so it is easy to treat each new game as a copy of the last one. Modern Warfare 4 is a bit different for two reasons.

First, it follows a year in which Black Ops 7 was reportedly received with little enthusiasm, and a lot of commentary around the beta framed Infinity Ward’s game as a chance to win players back. Second, it is the first Call of Duty built only for current-generation hardware, according to the game’s reference pages: there is no PS4 or Xbox One version. That frees the studio to push visuals, and on PC it brings expanded ray tracing for reflections, ambient occlusion and shadows.

So the real question is not whether it will sell, since it will. It is whether it is a good Call of Duty or just a new one. The beta gives us a few clues.

The campaign: Korea, a villain and a bet on a quiet idea

The story takes place around a North Korean invasion of South Korea. You play Private Park Hyun-Jun, a South Korean Marine, alongside Captain John Price, the veteran from earlier Modern Warfare games. The villain, known as the Archer, is played by Mads Mikkelsen and is linked to a mysterious weapon. Missions reportedly span Korea, New York, Paris and Mumbai, and the developers have said the story aims to feel “ripped from the headlines”.

Two details are worth knowing.

It can be played offline. The campaign does not need a constant internet connection, which, according to coverage of the announcement, has not been true of the series since Call of Duty: Vanguard. For players who travel, have unstable connections or simply dislike always-online games, that is a quiet but real improvement.

The beta gave us one mission. It was called “Entrenched” and takes place in South Korea, where the goal is to deactivate a compromised nuclear power plant. Reviewers described it as gritty, chaotic, fast and grounded, with excellent weapon detail, character animation and environments. One summary called it linear and spectacular, with well-executed tension that recaptures the blockbuster feel of the original trilogy. But not everyone was convinced: some critics found the gameplay predictable and said the mission lacked distinctive Korean flavour, feeling interchangeable with other Call of Duty campaigns.

That tension is the thing to watch. A single mission is not a campaign, and the developers say they consulted North Korean defectors and regional specialists to portray the setting respectfully, given the sensitivity of the armistice that has held since 1953. Whether that care shows up across the full story is something only the finished game can answer. Campaign early access begins on October 16 for digital pre-orders, so the first impressions of the whole story will arrive a week before launch.

Multiplayer: faster movement, less clutter

Multiplayer is where most players will spend their time, and Infinity Ward has changed more than it usually does.

Movement. There are new traversal tools. A mantle slide lets you press slide while climbing so you keep your momentum and arrive with your gun up, which one writer described as letting you go over cars on the Silkworm map while still firing. Pipe climbs replace some ladders, supine slides let you flank under garage doors and vehicles, and edge-hang and shimmy moves add vertical options. The developers describe it as adding “movie flair” without losing the grounded military look.

Maps. The game launches with 12 core 6v6 maps. In the beta, players saw Rooftops, Silkworm, Transit 213, Cachette, Lotus, Lithium and Kill Block, a map reported to have more than 500 dynamic layout configurations. Infinity Ward says it treats maps as “a cast of characters” and has reduced cover on purpose so that fights get quicker and require less mental effort. It also used photogrammetry to base environments on South Korean locations.

Gunplay. Hipfire bloom, the random spread of bullets when firing without aiming, has been removed. The beta offered up to 19 weapons and modes including Search & Destroy and Kill Block, and a training mobility course helped new players learn the movement.

Matchmaking. Insider Gaming reports a new system that prioritises connection quality over skill-based matching. Skill-based matchmaking is one of the most argued-about topics in the community, so it is worth watching what the studio says at launch.

For players who like big battles, there is also a large-scale mode called Big War, plus the Gunfight mode.

DMZ and Warzone

The extraction mode DMZ is back and revamped. Based on the reference summary, 20 squads of up to three players deploy to the Hajin exclusion zone, with story missions, randomly generated “Dynamic Operations”, a forward operating base hub for setting up your loadout, permanent progression through operator trait trees and dynamic weather.

Warzone is part of the package too. In the second beta weekend, Warzone Resurgence appeared with a brand-new map called Zodiac, along with tweaks such as being able to revive downed squadmates while prone and changes to the infil pistol.

Platforms: where it runs, where it does not

Modern Warfare 4 launches on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Nintendo Switch 2. It will not come to PS4 or Xbox One.

Switch 2 deserves a closer look. The port was built by Digital Legends and supports cross-play and Joy-Con 2 mouse controls. Multiplayer targets 60 FPS in both handheld and docked modes and mostly hits that when docked, while the campaign runs at 30 FPS. But the compromises are visible: to reach 60 FPS, many visuals and effects were scaled back, and one Kotaku headline said it “runs on Switch 2 and that’s the nicest thing I can say about it”. Nintendo Life collected first impressions, and a PS5 comparison video has also circulated. If you only own a Switch 2, treat the first reviews as essential before buying.

Game Pass is not included. Unlike the last two games in the series, Modern Warfare 4 is not on Game Pass at launch. Xbox has told subscribers it will arrive on the service later, with reports pointing to about a year after release, in 2027. If you are a subscriber, you can wait, but you will not be playing at launch for free.

PC requirements

The published PC requirements are:

• Minimum: AMD Ryzen 5 1400 or Intel Core i5-6600, 8GB of RAM and an NVIDIA GTX 970 or GTX 1060, AMD RX 470 or Intel Arc A580.
• Recommended (90 FPS in multiplayer on High): Ryzen 5 3600 or Core i7-8700K, 16GB of RAM and an RX 6600 XT, RTX 3060 Ti or Intel Arc B580.
• High end (4K upscaled with high ray tracing): Ryzen 7 3700X or Core i7-10700K, 32GB of RAM and an RX 9070 XT or RTX 5070 Ti.

You need about 115GB of free space, and the game requires Secure Boot and TPM 2.0. It supports NVIDIA DLSS 4.5, Intel XeSS 3.0 and AMD FSR Redstone at launch. The Secure Boot and TPM requirement is the one that catches people out, so check your PC’s settings before launch day.

Price and editions

The Standard Edition is $69.99 and the Vault Edition is $99.99. Vault adds the Hostile Alliance and Special Forces operator packs, the Signature Weapon Collection, one season of BlackCell and a DMZ deployment bonus. Any digital pre-order brings Campaign Early Access from October 16, open beta early access and the Hunter Killer operator skin. Owners of previous Call of Duty titles may qualify for a 10% loyalty discount on the digital Vault Edition, and prices vary by region, so check your store.

When can you play? Release times

Launch is at 9:00 PM Pacific on October 22, which is October 23 in most of the world. Here are some local times: 12:00 AM Eastern, 5:00 AM British Summer Time, 6:00 AM Central European, 9:30 AM India Standard Time, 1:00 PM Korea and Japan, and 3:00 PM Australian Eastern. Players with a digital pre-order can start the campaign a week earlier, on October 16.

Should you pre-order?

Here is how we would think about it, based on what is known today.

• Wait for reviews if you mainly want the campaign, since the beta only showed one mission and some players felt it was generic. Campaign early access means the first impressions will arrive on October 16.
• Pre-ordering makes sense if you play multiplayer every week, because the new movement and the 12 launch maps are the big changes, and the beta was generally well received.
• Think twice on Switch 2, because the early footage suggests major visual compromises.
• Xbox subscribers can wait for the Game Pass release if they are patient.

We rate our anticipation as cautiously optimistic: multiplayer looks like a real step forward, while the campaign and Switch 2 version still have something to prove.

FAQ

When does Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 come out? October 23, 2026, with the launch at 9:00 PM Pacific on October 22. In India that is 9:30 AM IST on October 23. Digital pre-orders get Campaign Early Access from October 16.

What platforms is Modern Warfare 4 on? PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Nintendo Switch 2. It is not available on PS4 or Xbox One.

Is Modern Warfare 4 on Game Pass? Not at launch. Xbox has said it will be added to Game Pass after release, with reports pointing to around 2027, and no confirmed date has been announced.

How much does Modern Warfare 4 cost? The Standard Edition is $69.99 and the Vault Edition is $99.99. Players who own a previous Call of Duty may get a 10% loyalty discount on the digital Vault Edition.

Can you play the Modern Warfare 4 campaign offline? Yes. The campaign is playable offline without a constant internet connection, which coverage says has not been the case since Call of Duty: Vanguard.

Is Modern Warfare 4 coming to Nintendo Switch 2? Yes, at launch. It was developed by Digital Legends and supports cross-play. Multiplayer targets 60 FPS and the campaign runs at 30 FPS, though early impressions say the visuals are heavily scaled back.

What are the PC requirements for Modern Warfare 4? The minimum is a Ryzen 5 1400 or Core i5-6600, 8GB of RAM and a GTX 970 or RX 470 class GPU. The recommended spec for 90 FPS is a Ryzen 5 3600 or Core i7-8700K, 16GB of RAM and an RTX 3060 Ti or RX 6600 XT. It needs about 115GB of space, Secure Boot and TPM 2.0.

What is DMZ in Modern Warfare 4? DMZ is the extraction mode, in which 20 squads of up to three players deploy to the Hajin exclusion zone to complete missions and extract with loot, with a base hub and permanent operator progression.

Do I need to play the older Modern Warfare games first? The campaign brings back Captain John Price, so longtime fans will recognise him, but nothing we found says you need to have played the earlier games to follow it.

Sources: Wikipedia — Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, Call of Duty — Announcing Modern Warfare 4, Xbox — Modern Warfare 4, Xbox Wire — Inside the maps and movement of multiplayer, GameSpot — Modern Warfare 4 beta dates, Insider Gaming — Modern Warfare 4 FAQ, Game Rant — Modern Warfare 4 editions and pre-order bonuses, AllThings.how — Modern Warfare 4 pre-orders, DSOGaming — Modern Warfare 4 PC requirements, Neowin — Modern Warfare 4 PC specs and preload, Inven Global — Modern Warfare 4 not on Game Pass day one, Kotaku — Modern Warfare 4 on Switch 2, Notebookcheck — Modern Warfare 4 Switch 2 60 fps, Nintendo Life — Switch 2 first impressions round-up, The AU Review — Modern Warfare 4 beta impressions, Newshub — Modern Warfare 4 beta review