Modern Warfare 4 releases October 23 with early campaign access for digital preorders
A week of early campaign access awaits digital preorders—but is it worth going all-in on digital?
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Modern Warfare 4 hits shelves October 23 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2 and PC, bringing back the boots-on-the-ground action that made the original trilogy a fixture in every dorm room and basement LAN party of the late 2000s.
Digital preorders unlock the campaign a full week early on October 16, plus DMZ mode on October 20—three days before the official launch. That's the carrot for going all-in on digital, which also means no disc to trade or lend later.
Refresher
The Modern Warfare reboot launched in 2019 with a grittier take on Captain Price and Task Force 141, followed by Modern Warfare II in 2022 and Modern Warfare III in 2023. The franchise has been Activision's flagship since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare redefined console shooters in 2007, back when we were all arguing over who got to use the intervention in Rust 1v1s.
The early access window is aimed squarely at players who want to run through the campaign before spoilers flood YouTube or get into DMZ before the masses show up. If that's you, the preorder pays off. If you'd rather own the physical copy and save a little money, waiting a week won't hurt.
Launching in the middle of the crowded fall release calendar means Modern Warfare 4 will compete with every other big shooter and holiday blockbuster for your time and wallet. Expect the usual server issues on day one and a battle pass that shows up before you finish the story.
For everyone who grew up on the original Modern Warfare trilogy, this is the closest thing to a reunion the series has offered since Infinity Ward's golden era. Whether it delivers moments on par with All Ghillied Up or No Russian is still up in the air, but the setup points to a return to what made those games legendary.
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Where this came from
This story was compiled from the reporting below, then checked against it.
- Modern Warfare 4 Testers Vote To Authorize Union Strike As Contract Negotiations Stall: ‘It Is Time To Stop Playing Games’, Kotaku
- COD Modern Warfare 4 will ‘close this chapter and launch a new one’ for the series, Activision says, VGC
- Modern Warfare 4 release times and early access explained, PC Gamer
- Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 early access and full launch release countdown, Destructoid
- CoD: Modern Warfare 4 Goes Back To Basics To Properly Finish Its Story, GameSpot
- How ‘Call of Duty’ Found Its ‘Modern Warfare 4’ Cast, From Mads Mikkelsen’s Villain to Prisca Kim’s Ri Ju-Young, Variety
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