Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 review-in-progress: "Spectacular set pieces make this campaign hard to put down"

Modern Warfare 4 is a confident cinematic shooter that brings almost a decade of storytelling to a satisfying conclusion. Its spectacular set pieces, strong performances, and surprising moral complexity make for a campaign that's hard to put down, even when rigid mission design and frustrating restrictions threaten to spoil the fun.

Stranded mission offers a really freeform experience

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شارەزایانمان لە ماوەی چەند کاتژمێرێکی بێشوماردا پێداچوونەوە بە یارییەکان و فیلم و تەکنەلۆژیادا دەکەن، بۆ ئەوەی بتوانیت باشترینەکان بۆ خۆت هەڵبژێریت. زیاتر بزانە دەربارەی سیاسەتی پێداچوونەوەکانمان.

Wu-Tang Clan's C.R.E.A.M. is playing as you wander through the streets of Seoul. People are going about their day, the convenience stores are stocked, and the city feels alive. Then North Korean forces attack, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 gets down to business.

It's the start to a campaign that feels authentic in the way that few franchises really manage to pull off. Call of Duty is one of them, when it's on form, and I'm happy to report that Modern Warfare 4 is one of The Good Ones: it looks superb, moves at a relentless pace, and manages to bring years worth of Modern Warfare storytelling to a satisfying conclusion.

I've spent the last 20 years playing every first-person shooter I can get my hands on. I've reviewed a score of Call of Duty games in addition to other big budget shooters like Battlefield, Escape From Tarkov, Titanfall 2, High on Life, and others. Writing this bio made me remember quite how many shooters I've actually reviewed. – Reviewer Jake Tucker

Release date: October 23, 2026Platform(s): PC, PS5, Switch 3, Xbox Series XDeveloper: Infinity WardPublisher: Activision

Right now, we're only allowed to give you our thoughts on the game's campaign, and the primary way I'd describe that campaign is that it's confident. This opening level with its everyday Seoul life reminds me of the portrayal of small town America seen in 2009's Modern Warfare 2. There's a real sense of place even if in classic Call of Duty fashion it's still incongruous, letting you stroll around the convenience store swinging haymakers at the crisps as everyone chatters around you.