Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 went on sale on October 23, 2026, and Xbox Wire is now pointing players to it as one of the highest-rated Call of Duty games ever. Critics have mostly agreed that this one is a return to form, though not every part of it lands equally well.
What the reviews say
The review aggregator Metacritic lists a score of 84 from 19 critic reviews, according to a review roundup from The Shortcut. For comparison, the same roundup puts Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 at 65 on Metacritic.
Individual outlets were warm. Destructoid and DayOne each gave 9/10, and GameSpot gave 8/10. Game Informer did not score the game but called it “a strong return to form”, praising the multiplayer and DMZ while finding the story execution shaky.
What is in the game
Modern Warfare 4 has a single-player campaign, online multiplayer and DMZ. On the multiplayer side, Sony’s PlayStation Blog says there are 12 Core 6v6 maps at launch, with two more arriving shortly afterward, plus Core and Hardcore modes and party modes.
The headline new feature is Kill Block, a training environment at the West Bridge Training Facility. It is built from three connected Slabs that can reconfigure between matches, with the game promising over 500 possible configurations. It launches with 3v3 Gunfight and a new 10v10 Gunfight.
Platforms, price and Game Pass
The Xbox Store lists the game for Xbox Series X|S, Xbox Cloud Gaming and Xbox on PC, and says it is not available on Xbox One. It also lists Xbox Play Anywhere, cross-platform multiplayer and support for 4K Ultra HD, HDR10 and 120 fps. The Shortcut adds PS5 and Nintendo Switch 2 to the list.
The Xbox Store prices the Standard edition at $69.99 and the Vault Edition at $99.99, with a $30.00 upgrade for existing owners. Those are US store figures. Canadian pricing is not given in the pages we checked, so Canadian players should confirm the price on the Xbox Store or their retailer.
What it means for you
The Xbox Store states plainly that the game is “Not on Xbox Game Pass this year.” A report from Digital Citizen says subscribers who want to play now must buy the game, and that Game Pass arrival is expected around Holiday 2027. Online multiplayer on console also needs a separate Game Pass subscription, according to the store listing, which gives conflicting tier details, so check the exact requirement before you buy.
The scores suggest this is an easy Call of Duty to recommend to players who buy their games outright. If you only play through Game Pass, the wait is long.
