MW4 has not been released yet and is based on official reveals, press hands-on sessions, and community coverage. Information in this post may change as new details become available. We will keep this post updated.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is official. Infinity Ward revealed the next mainline CoD title on May 28 with a full announcement, a reveal trailer, and press hands-on sessions for multiplayer. MW4 launches on October 23, 2026, with returning fan favorites like Classic Prestige and DMZ alongside new systems the franchise has never tried.
This is our complete breakdown of everything confirmed so far. We keep updating this post as new information drops, covering the official Xbox Wire announcement, Blizzard’s detailed reveal, the June 6 DMZ deep dive, and the first public hands-on at Fanatics Fest NYC in July.
MW4 Release Date and Platforms
Modern Warfare 4 launches October 23, 2026 on every current-gen platform:
- PlayStation 5
- Xbox Series X|S
- PC (Steam, Battle.net, Xbox app)
- Nintendo Switch 2
No PS4 or Xbox One version. This is current-gen only, which means Infinity Ward can build for current hardware without compromise. The game is an Xbox Play Anywhere title, so buying it digitally on Xbox also gives you the PC version.
The Switch 2 launch is significant. This is the first Call of Duty on a Nintendo platform in 13 years, since Ghosts on Wii U back in 2013. Infinity Ward confirmed full cross-play between Switch 2 and all other platforms, though the developer noted the exact cross-play setup will be finalized closer to launch. Some members in our COD Central Discord were skeptical about how the game would run on Switch 2, but CoD on a portable console is a first for the franchise.
PC players should note that TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are required, and the game supports DLSS 4.5, expanded ray tracing across all modes, and extensive graphics customization options.
One thing MW4 will not do is launch on Game Pass. Microsoft announced in April that new Call of Duty titles no longer arrive on Game Pass day one, and instead join the service roughly a year after release. If you were planning to play MW4 through your subscription at launch, you will need to buy the game.
Pre-orders come with Campaign Early Access. Anyone who pre-ordered digitally on any platform, Standard or Vault, can start the campaign on Friday, October 16, a full week before launch. That applies to Switch 2 as well, once pre-orders open there.
MW4 Campaign: Korea, Price, and Makarov
The campaign opens with North Korea launching a full-scale invasion of South Korea. It’s a setting the franchise has never properly explored, and Infinity Ward co-studio head Jack O’Hara explained the reasoning: “That’s what made it compelling. It felt new. It felt like going somewhere new.”
The story follows two intertwined plotlines:
- Private Park, a young South Korean soldier experiencing combat for the first time. His squad includes Korean conscripts and embedded US Marines, aged 18-25. This is Call of Duty returning to the “grunt perspective” for the first time since the original Modern Warfare era.
- Captain Price, now rogue and operating outside Task Force 141. After the events of MW3 (2023) and the death of Soap MacTavish, Price is hunting Makarov. Activision’s own wording calls him an “operator-turned-outlaw” chasing “a weapon powerful enough to shift the balance of power.” He’s described as darker, more desperate, and running out of allies.
The two storylines converge as the war spreads globally. Missions take you across Korean trenches, close-quarters combat in New York City, high-speed chases through Paris, SAS night raids in Mumbai, and operations in Russia.
One campaign detail is worth knowing before you go in, so skip this paragraph if you want the story cold. Press who played the campaign at the reveal event report that Makarov dies early, in a New York mission, rather than serving as the villain for the whole game. His death opens up a conspiracy and a weapon that pushes Price into espionage work and an uneasy alliance with Valeria. Missions shown to press included a Paris car chase, that New York nightclub hit, a train yard escape in France, a city assault built on D-Day imagery, and a nuclear facility fight with trenches, tanks and drones.
On July 30, Infinity Ward put out the first in-game campaign footage: a vignette for “Losing Ground,” where a South Korean squad fights through a collapsing frontline as the invasion pushes in. It is one of the campaign’s large war missions, and it ships with every edition rather than being a pre-order exclusive.
Ghost and Valeria Garza both return, and the trailer teased a Price vs. Ghost conflict that got people talking in our Discord immediately. Two names people keep asking about are not on the announced cast list: Gaz has not been mentioned at all, and Soap stays dead after MW3 (2023). Neither is a confirmed absence, but neither has been shown. Infinity Ward also mentioned a new “Shockwave” system where explosions knock players down instead of killing them outright, which O’Hara says creates moments where “the story continues” instead of instant death.
The Modern Warfare series consistently delivers stronger campaigns than the Black Ops side. If Infinity Ward keeps that momentum, this Korean War setting could be one of the most memorable CoD campaigns in years.
MW4 Multiplayer and Ballistic Authority
The biggest multiplayer change is Ballistic Authority, a new weapon technology system that completely removes weapon bloom from hipfire. No random bullet spread. Your shots go exactly where you’re aiming.
Bloom has been a frustration in CoD for years because it adds randomness to gunfights. You lose track of what you’re shooting at and die to something that felt out of your control. Ballistic Authority eliminates that. Hipfire is now predictable and skill-based, so the better player wins the fight, not the luckier one.
Press who played multiplayer during the reveal event confirmed the difference is noticeable. Destructoid’s hands-on preview called hipfire “way more reliable than ever before,” and described the overall gunplay as “buttery smooth.” Weapons feel heavy, punchy, and responsive according to multiple outlets.
Beyond bloom removal, Ballistic Authority also includes rebuilt recoil mechanics, improved depth of field for spotting enemies, and reduced gun smoke obstruction. That last one addresses a long-standing complaint from MW2 (2022) where your own muzzle flash could block your view.
On July 15, Call of Duty released over two minutes of official weapon gameplay showing these systems in action. The footage demonstrates the bloom removal with laser lines tracing exactly where hipfire bullets land, shows Apex Attachments in play, and reveals how the smoke reduction actually works: muzzle smoke bends around your target in a cone shape, so your view of the enemy stays clear while the smoke still exists visually. The video even includes a side-by-side comparison with MW2 (2022) to show the difference, which is an unusually self-critical move for an official CoD channel.
Movement has been rebuilt too. Tactical Sprint returns, but the omnimovement system from recent Black Ops titles is gone. Instead, MW4 introduces new mantling, climbing, hanging, and sliding mechanics. Press described it as “grounded” and more methodical than BO7’s faster pace. If you’re coming from Black Ops, expect an adjustment period. In our Discord, the removal of bloom was the most praised multiplayer change. Most players felt this was long overdue.
A steady stream of smaller confirmations has built up since the reveal. Takedowns are now first-person instead of the third-person animations from MW19. Doors return, and you can peek or breach them. The riot shield comes back as a destructible Field Upgrade rather than a primary weapon, which should calm anyone with turtle-related trauma from MW2 (2022). Players who went hands-on early also report that map voting, theater mode, and red dots on the minimap for unsuppressed fire are all back. Those last three come from creator accounts rather than official announcements, but multiple players who played the game describe them the same way.
MW4 launches with 12 core 6v6 maps, dedicated Gunfight maps, and multiple Big War maps for large-scale vehicle and infantry combat. These are the confirmed core maps, with everything known about each one so far:
- Cachette
- Coal
- Lithium: Korean city streets, three-lane design
- Lotus
- Mumbai
- Munition
- Nautical
- Reactor U92
- Rooftops
- Sentry
- Silkworm: urban, long sightlines
- Transit 213: small train yard
Shipment is not on that list, and no remaster of it has been announced for MW4. The nine maps without a description have only been named so far, so we will fill those in as Infinity Ward shows them.
The game ships with 24 primary weapons and 8 secondaries. A new mode called Inflation was also revealed: a 6v6 mode where eliminated players drop money and the wealthiest team wins.
Kill Block: The First Dynamic CoD Map
Kill Block might be the most interesting multiplayer feature in MW4. Set in the West Bridge Advanced Military Training Facility, it’s Call of Duty’s first truly dynamic map with over 500 layout configurations.
The map has three sections called “slabs.” During a match, the center slab reconfigures, reshaping sightlines, routes, and cover. In the event build players reported the change happening roughly every two rounds. According to Shacknews, it can even incorporate pieces from classic Modern Warfare multiplayer maps from across the series. The design was inspired by Real Madrid’s football stadium, which repositions its pitch between events.
Kill Block supports 1v1, 3v3, and 10v10 Gunfight formats, with plans to expand to additional multiplayer modes post-launch. New slab combinations will be added in seasonal updates, growing the possible configurations over time. Size-wise, Call of Duty compares the play space to Shoot House.
The First Public Hands-On: Fanatics Fest NYC
From July 16 to 19, Kill Block became the first piece of MW4 anyone outside press events could actually play. Call of Duty brought a playable alpha build to Fanatics Fest New York City, running Gunfight 1v1, 3v3, and 10v10, with streamers like TimTheTatman, Swagg, and MrDalekJD on it live.
The live gameplay confirmed a few things the announcement only hinted at. Classic map sections are real: players recognized Crash and Winter Crash from CoD 4 and High-Rise from MW2 (2009) among the slab configurations, and an official teaser previously named Kill House as well. Slabs also bring their own weather, with some configurations playing in snow or rain while others stay dry. The build ran unannounced weapons too, though the names players read off the HUD are provisional until Activision publishes a list.
Not all feedback was positive. Swagg called heavy visual recoil the number one complaint among creators at the event, especially on assault rifles, and players noted the alpha build lacked an FOV slider. Visual recoil is worth watching since it directly fights the visibility improvements Ballistic Authority promises.
Infinity Ward answered inside a day, on July 17.
Infinity Ward @InfinityWardJuly 17, 2026Thanks for the feedback from yesterday’s Kill Block streams. We just rolled out a fix for the bugged suppressor that was using the wrong muzzle flash VFX. Additionally, we have reduced muzzle smoke opacity for all weapons for this weekend’s preview sessions. A clear sight picture is critical to the gameplay experience. Keep the energy coming, we’re engaged.
That covers the bugged suppressor and the smoke, not the recoil animation itself. Whether the remaining visual recoil is still too heavy is exactly what the beta will settle.
500+ configurations that force you to adapt instead of memorize sounds great on paper, and first impressions from the event were mostly positive. The real test is whether the changes feel meaningful after hundreds of hours or just cosmetic. Our community was split on that: some liked maps that stay fresh, others felt CoD maps should be learnable and predictable.
Create-a-Class Overhaul
On May 30, Infinity Ward showed off a reworked Create-a-Class system. For the first time in a Modern Warfare game, you can assign a unique Operator and a separate Killstreak set to each individual loadout, instead of picking one Operator and one streak package for your whole profile.
That sounds small, but it changes how you build classes. Your aggressive SMG loadout can run a different Operator and shorter, cheaper streaks tuned for fast play, while your long-range marksman class carries higher-cost streaks and a different look. Each class becomes a self-contained setup for a specific playstyle or game mode.
The work-in-progress preview also gave us a look at the new menu. Classes now carry role-based names like Slayer, Rush, Marksman, and CQC, weapons show a full level grind to max (the M4 sits at 66/66 in the shot), and each loadout lists its own Tactical, Lethal, Field Upgrade, Perks, and three Killstreaks with their cost. Infinity Ward stressed this is still in development, so the exact layout may change before launch.
Apex Attachments and Prestige
Apex Attachments are a new layer of weapon customization. When you fully max out a weapon’s progression, you unlock special modifications that don’t take up an attachment slot. These aren’t minor buffs. The examples shown are wild:
- A launcher that fires throwing knives
- A Heartbeat Sensor with a mounted screen
- A shotgun attachment on a pistol
Some press raised concerns about balance, calling these “outlandish” for a game that markets itself as grounded and realistic. This ties into a bigger worry from our community: MW4 is marketed as grounded, but how long until wacky cosmetics and over-the-top attachments break that tone? Multiple members in our Discord said keeping the game realistic was their top priority. If Apex Attachments start feeling like party tricks, that grounded identity takes a hit.
MW4 also introduces Gunny, an AI-powered weapon advisor that helps build loadouts based on your playstyle. You can share weapon builds with other players too.
Apex Attachments only unlock once a weapon is fully maxed, and creators who played the alpha put most weapon caps somewhere in the 60s. That set off a progression debate before anyone has even played a full match, and Infinity Ward acknowledged it on July 20: the studio said it sees the conversation around weapon progression and has more to share on leveling and the grind soon. No numbers yet, so treat every level requirement floating around as provisional.
On the progression side, MW4 brings two Prestige paths:
- Classic Prestige: Full reset of your Create-a-Class. Faster XP gains and exclusive rewards as compensation. This is the old-school grind that veteran players have been asking for.
- Regular Prestige: Keep your loadout unlocks while still progressing through Prestige levels. Essentially seasonal prestige without the seasonal level reset.
Classic Prestige returning was universally praised in our Discord. The grind, the reset, the exclusive rewards. That is what people wanted back. Regular Prestige got a cooler reception. Most members saw it as seasonal prestige without the seasonal reset, which does not add much. Still, having the choice means nobody is forced into the old-school grind if they do not want it.
MW4 Beta Dates and Call of Duty: NEXT
The beta is locked in for two weekends in August, and this year it starts the moment the reveal stream ends.
- Early Access Beta: August 21 to 25. Pre-order required. PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC only.
- Open Beta: August 28 to September 1. Every platform, no pre-order, no code. This is the weekend Switch 2 joins, and Nintendo Switch Online is required there.
Call of Duty: NEXT runs on August 21 with live gameplay, a full briefing on what is coming to multiplayer, developer segments and new reveals. The beta then kicks off immediately after the broadcast, which Activision says is a first for the series. NEXT is also where the remaining pieces are expected to land: a proper look at DMZ and the first showing of MW4’s Warzone.
What you can actually play in the beta: multiple maps and modes, a wide selection of new Operators, and as many as 19 weapons. Activision named Search and Destroy, Kill Block and the Training Mobility Course, and described everything “from small-scale 3v3 skirmishes to massive tactical battles featuring tanks and more,” which is Ground War in all but name. Loadouts, Gunny, Tacticals, Lethals, Field Upgrades, Perks and Killstreaks are all in. The full map list and the beta rewards have not been announced yet.
Vault Edition pre-orders get more to work with. All four Hostile Alliance Operators are playable in the beta (Price, Valeria, Ghost and Blix, with Price and Valeria maskable through the emote system), plus the four Special Forces Operators, each with a voice pack in their own language: COM SFT from France, KSK Amphibious from Germany, SK Special Forces from South Korea, and the SAS. Vault owners can also test the base weapon and blueprint of all five Signature Weapons together with their Apex Attachment, which is the only realistic way to try an Apex before launch.
Two more dates worth putting in the calendar. Switch 2 pre-orders open on August 26, after the early access weekend has already started. And at gamescom in Cologne, August 26 to 30, Xbox is running core 6v6 multiplayer on Xbox Series X, the first time the standard 6v6 experience is playable in public rather than the Kill Block alpha.
DMZ: The Hajin Exclusion Zone
DMZ returns as MW4’s third pillar alongside Campaign and Multiplayer. On June 6, Infinity Ward released a full deep dive revealing what they’ve been building since the MW2 beta.
The map is called Hajin, a massive exclusion zone on the Korean peninsula scarred by the events of the campaign. You play as a shadow CIA asset securing military tech behind enemy lines. Locations range from an irradiated reactor and a prison complex to Hajin City ruins and a casino with a breakable vault. Weather shifts dynamically, and an AI escalation system sends increasingly dangerous forces after you as your activity draws attention, scaling up to Lieutenants, tanks, Juggernauts, and Deathstalker helicopters.
Between deployments, you operate from a persistent Forward Operating Base with a 3D Printer for crafting, a Gunsmith, Operator management with Trait Trees, and a Boss Board for tracking Lieutenants. A bounty system tracks PvP kills and puts a price on your head, and proximity chat now uses directional audio with environmental reverb. Story Missions, Dynamic Operations, and Side Ops give structure, but you can also free-roam and forge your own path.
The vehicle roster got an unusual addition on July 16: the Aston Martin Dreadnought, a bespoke armored tactical SUV designed by Aston Martin’s actual design team together with Infinity Ward. It exists only in-game and will be drivable at key points of interest in both DMZ and Warzone at launch. A full-size physical version was shown at Fanatics Fest NYC.
We wrote a complete breakdown of everything revealed about DMZ, covering the FOB, crafting, Operator progression, escalation, bounty mechanics, and more.
DMZ was the most discussed feature in our Discord after the initial announcement, and the deep dive has only amplified that excitement. The extraction shooter genre has matured since 2022, and if Infinity Ward delivers on what they’ve shown, this could be the strongest third mode CoD has ever shipped.
No Zombies in MW4
MW4 does not include a Zombies mode. DMZ replaces it as the third pillar. Zombies stays with the Black Ops series.
This makes sense. Black Ops 6 and Black Ops 7 both shipped with Zombies, and releasing another Zombies mode this soon would feel rushed. By skipping it, the team working on the next Zombies experience has more time to create something genuinely new instead of iterating under a yearly deadline.
For our community, this means BO7 Zombies stays relevant longer. No competing Zombies mode means Endgame, relic hunts, and high round runs on Totenreich keep their momentum. We have a complete BO7 Zombies loadout guide and an Endgame explainer for anyone still working through the mode.
Warzone Full Reset
This is the big one for Warzone players. When MW4 Season 1 launches, Warzone gets a complete reset. All cosmetics, weapons, operators, camos, and blueprints from previous titles are gone. Nothing carries over.
This is the most significant reset since Warzone launched in 2020. Six years of accumulated progression, wiped clean.
A fresh start has its appeal. Warzone’s bloated weapon pool and years of cosmetic creep have made the game feel messy. Starting over with only MW4 content means a cleaner experience, a more balanced meta at launch, and no legacy baggage. A new Korea-themed battle royale map is also rumored.
On the other hand, if you’ve spent hundreds of dollars on Warzone skins and blueprints, watching all of that disappear stings. Our community was split on this. Some welcomed the clean slate. Others felt burned, especially players who bought store bundles expecting them to carry forward. Six years of purchases vanishing overnight is a tough pill regardless of the gameplay benefits.
One thing does survive. Call of Duty’s community team account confirmed on August 5 that your unused 2XP tokens make the trip.
@CallofDutyCMAugust 5, 2026We’ll be sippin’ on Monster and popping 2XP with the community on Day 1 of MP. (Your tokens from WZ/BO7 also transfer over.)
The same account answered the obvious follow-up in the Reddit thread where the post was doing the rounds: COD Points move across too, with the usual restriction that they only travel between titles inside the same platform family. Neither has appeared in an official blog post yet, so this is a community manager statement rather than published policy, but it is a direct one. If you have been sitting on a pile of tokens since you stopped playing BO7, they are worth something again.
Warzone will also be removed from PS4 and Xbox One when MW4 launches, ending last-gen support entirely.
MW4 Editions and Pre-Order
| Feature | Standard ($69.99) | Vault ($99.99) |
|---|---|---|
| Base game | Yes | Yes |
| Open Beta early access | Yes (pre-order) | Yes (pre-order) |
| Hunter Killer Operator Skin | Yes (pre-order) | Yes (pre-order) |
| 4 Operator Packs | No | Yes |
| 5 Signature Weapons | No | Yes |
| 1 Season BlackCell Pass | No | Yes |
| DMZ Bonus Content | No | Yes |
| 10% Loyalty Discount | Yes | Yes |
Pre-ordering guarantees early access to the beta on August 21. Beta codes have also been circulating since CoD Champs in July, and those grant the same early access window. The open weekend from August 28 needs nothing at all. The 10% loyalty discount applies if you own any Call of Duty title from 2019 onwards on the same platform, which brings the Vault Edition down to around $90. The Hunter Killer Operator Skin is usable immediately in BO7 and Warzone.
Our Community Reacts
We pulled reactions from our COD Central Discord (50,000+ members) on announcement day. Our server skews toward Zombies and BO7 players, so keep that in mind.
DMZ stole the show by a wide margin, and multiple members said it was the reason they would pre-order. The trailer itself got a more mixed reception: promising graphics and tone, no real standout moment.
One theme came up across every topic: keep it grounded. Skins, attachments, the overall vibe. Our members want MW4 to feel like a military shooter, not a cosmetic showcase, and the general expectation that Activision will push collaboration skins early frustrates people before the game has even launched.
Our Take
MW4 looks increasingly strong with each reveal. The initial announcement covered campaign, multiplayer, and the return of DMZ. Now that Infinity Ward has shown the full scope of what DMZ offers, there is a lot more to be excited about.
The Korean War campaign setting feels fresh for the franchise, and returning to the grunt perspective is a smart call. Ballistic Authority removing bloom rewards skill over randomness. The DMZ deep dive showed a level of systems depth that goes well beyond what we expected. If those systems deliver, MW4 could ship with the strongest third mode in Call of Duty history.
The concerns are real too. MW2 (2022) left a sour taste for many players. Apex Attachments could undermine the grounded tone. The extraction shooter space is competitive now, and DMZ needs to stand up against dedicated titles in the genre, not just compare favorably to its own 2022 beta.
The reveal cycle is about to peak. The DMZ First Look trailer landed at the Xbox Games Showcase, the July 15 gameplay video showed Ballistic Authority working as advertised, Kill Block survived its first contact with the public at Fanatics Fest, and the campaign finally showed real gameplay with “Losing Ground.” Everything now points at August 21: Call of Duty: NEXT, the first beta weekend right behind it, and the reveals still missing, including Warzone’s new map and a proper DMZ showing. Then gamescom the following week. We will keep updating this post as it happens.
FAQ
When does Modern Warfare 4 release?
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 releases on October 23, 2026. It launches on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC (Steam, Battle.net, Xbox app), and Nintendo Switch 2. There is no last-gen version for PS4 or Xbox One. Anyone who pre-orders digitally gets Campaign Early Access from October 16, a full week before launch.
When is the Modern Warfare 4 beta?
The MW4 beta runs across two weekends. The Early Access Beta is August 21 to 25 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, and requires a pre-order or a beta code. The Open Beta is August 28 to September 1 on every platform including Nintendo Switch 2, with no pre-order needed. The beta starts on August 21 immediately after the Call of Duty: NEXT broadcast.
Does Modern Warfare 4 have Zombies?
No. Modern Warfare 4 does not have a Zombies mode. The three pillars are Campaign, Multiplayer, and DMZ (extraction mode). Zombies stays exclusive to the Black Ops series. Black Ops 7 Zombies will continue receiving content updates through 2026.
Does Modern Warfare 4 have DMZ?
Yes. DMZ returns in Modern Warfare 4 as the third game mode alongside Campaign and Multiplayer. The map is called Hajin, a massive exclusion zone on the Korean peninsula scarred by the events of the campaign. It features a persistent Forward Operating Base, crafting via a 3D Printer, Active Duty Operators with Trait Trees, Story Missions, Dynamic Operations, an AI escalation system, a PvP bounty system, and revamped proximity chat. Infinity Ward calls it the definitive Call of Duty extraction experience.
Will my Warzone skins carry over to MW4?
No. Modern Warfare 4 brings a full Warzone reset. All weapons, operators, camos, blueprints, and cosmetics from previous titles (MW2, MW3, BO6, BO7) will not transfer. This is the biggest reset since Warzone launched in 2020. A new Korea-themed battle royale map is expected with MW4 Season 1.
Do double XP tokens carry over to Modern Warfare 4?
Yes. Call of Duty's community team account confirmed on August 5, 2026 that unused 2XP tokens from Warzone and Black Ops 7 transfer to MW4, and that COD Points carry over as well, with the usual limit that they only move between titles within the same platform family. This has not been published as an official blog post yet.
What is Ballistic Authority?
Ballistic Authority is MW4's new weapon technology system that completely removes weapon bloom from hipfire. Bullets go exactly where you aim with no random spread. It also includes rebuilt recoil mechanics, realistic audio propagation, improved visibility, and reduced gun smoke. Press previews described hipfire as way more reliable than ever before in Call of Duty.
Is MW4 on Switch 2?
Yes. Modern Warfare 4 launches on Nintendo Switch 2 on October 23, 2026, with full cross-play support across all platforms. This is the first Call of Duty game on a Nintendo platform in 13 years, since Call of Duty: Ghosts on Wii U in 2013.
What is Kill Block in MW4?
Kill Block is MW4's first dynamic multiplayer map, set in the West Bridge Advanced Military Training Facility. It features three sections called slabs that reconfigure during the match (roughly every two rounds in the public alpha build), creating over 500 different layout combinations. The center slab changes the most, reshaping sightlines, routes, and cover. It includes pieces from classic Modern Warfare maps, with Crash, Winter Crash, and High-Rise already spotted during the Fanatics Fest hands-on. Kill Block supports 1v1, 3v3, and 10v10 Gunfight formats.
Can you choose an Operator per loadout in MW4?
Yes. Modern Warfare 4 reworks Create-a-Class so each loadout can have its own Operator and its own Killstreak set. This is the first Modern Warfare game to allow a unique Operator and streak package per class instead of one selection for your whole profile. Infinity Ward showed a work-in-progress preview on May 30, 2026.
Is Gaz in Modern Warfare 4?
Not as far as Infinity Ward has announced. The campaign cast revealed so far covers Private Park, Captain Price, Simon "Ghost" Riley, Valeria Garza and First Lieutenant West, and Kyle "Gaz" Garrick is not among them. That is an absence from the announced cast rather than a confirmation he is out, and Task Force 141 is central to the story, so he could still turn up. We will update this the moment there is an official word.
Is Soap in Modern Warfare 4?
No. Soap MacTavish died in Modern Warfare 3 (2023) and he is not part of the announced Modern Warfare 4 cast. His death is still driving the plot: it is a large part of why Captain Price is operating outside Task Force 141 as, in Activision's own words, an "operator-turned-outlaw."
Will Shipment be in Modern Warfare 4?
Not at launch. Infinity Ward has confirmed 12 core 6v6 maps for launch and Shipment is not one of them, nor has any remaster of it been announced. The closest thing on the list is Transit 213, a small train yard. Call of Duty has added Shipment to several games after release, so a later season remains possible, but nothing has been said.
How long has Modern Warfare 4 been in development?
Infinity Ward has not given a total development time for Modern Warfare 4. The one figure the studio has put a number on is DMZ, which it says has been in development for four to five years, running since the original DMZ was still live. That places work on this project well before the 2026 reveal.
Does MW4 have Classic Prestige?
Yes. Modern Warfare 4 features two Prestige paths. Classic Prestige resets your Create-a-Class and gives faster XP plus exclusive rewards. Regular Prestige lets you keep your unlocked loadouts while still progressing through Prestige levels. Players can choose whichever path fits their playstyle.
We’ll keep updating this post as new MW4 information drops, with Call of Duty: NEXT, the beta weekends and gamescom next on the list. Join our COD Central Discord to discuss MW4 with 50,000+ players as more details come in.
