Modern Warfare 4 beta dates set for August, and this year Game Pass subscribers get no special treatment
Overview & Key Takeaways
Pre-order players get five extra days of playtime.
It's that time of year again: The next Call of Duty is on deck, and Activision's got the beta dates to prove it. Modern Warfare 4 won't hit the streets until late October, but the multiplayer beta begins a full two months ahead of time.
As usual, Activision is holding two beta weekends: One for those who pre-order the game and one for everyone else.
- Weekend 1 (August 21-25): For those who pre-order Modern Warfare 4 on PC, PS5, or Xbox (no Switch 2 beta)
- Weekend 2 (August 28 to September 1): A proper public beta on all platforms (including Switch 2)
Fairly expected for a CoD beta calendar, except for a few abnormal details, like how Switch 2 players will be left out of that first weekend (that version might be coming in a little hot compared to the others). There's also the fact that pre-order weekend is five days instead of four—further stretching the definition of "weekend." That means pre-order players can start the same day as the Call of Duty Next livestream and won't have to watch streamers enjoy a 24-hour headstart.
Latest Videos From
Less surprising, but surely disappointing for many, is that Game Pass subscribers will not be entitled to early beta access this year. They were for both Black Ops 6 and 7, but apparently Microsoft's decision to exclude new CoDs from its service also extends to betas.
(Image credit: Activision Blizzard)
Sounds like the Modern Warfare 4 beta will be a decent tasting menu for the full package. Players can unlock "19 different weapons before deploying into everything from small-scale 3v3 skirmishes to massive tactical battles featuring tanks and more," a blog post published today reads. "Test your mettle across new and returning modes, from Search & Destroy to the brand-new Kill Block, plus the Training Mobility Course."
Kill Block is a modular multiplayer map made for both small and medium-sized modes. The map is divided into chunks that dynamically swap between rounds. It's the sort of experimental gimmick that seems unlikely to catch on in a big way, but 10v10 Gunfight on Kill Block was a highlight when I played Modern Warfare 4 back in May. During one round, the map became a 1:1 recreation of Crash from the original 2007 Modern Warfare—charming.
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
