Modern Warfare 4 Launch Guide: 11 Mistakes to Avoid Before You Play

Your first night in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 can go wrong before you load into a match. A PC that fails Activision’s security check gets locked out of every online mode. An Activision ID linked to the wrong PlayStation account can take a year to undo. And one careless DMZ deployment can cost you an Operator’s gear.

Multiplayer unlocks at midnight local time on October 23 (release times by zone). Below is a checklist to run before then, followed by the 11 mistakes in detail: what goes wrong, and what to do instead. The account and PC problems are the ones to fix before launch night. The in-match ones you’ll fix by playing.

Modern Warfare 4 launch checklist

Before launch night

• Install the game early. PC preload opened October 15 at 9 AM PT. On PC you need 115GB free on an SSD.
• Sign in to your Activision account and check the Linked Accounts list before you change anything.
• Turn on two-factor authentication. PC players also need a phone number on the account.
• PC: confirm TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are on (steps in #6).
• Console: make sure PS Plus, Game Pass Essential or Nintendo Switch Online is active.

Before your first match

• Set sensitivity, aim-down-sights sensitivity and field of view where your platform has it. Five minutes in settings beats judging the game on defaults.
• Check which button does slide, crouch and mantle, then try the new movement in the mobility course.
• Pick one weapon you can control and level it, rather than spreading early XP across five.

Before your first DMZ deployment

• Decide which Operator and which gear you’re willing to lose.
• Know your extraction plan before you start looting.

1. Don’t play it like Modern Warfare III

Infinity Ward deliberately cut back the cover on MW4’s maps. Multiplayer creative director Geoff Smith told Xbox Wire that removing cover makes the game quicker “because there are fewer places to check.” Movement speed didn’t go up. The maps just give you fewer places to hide.

So parking behind a wall and waiting for someone to peek works less often than it did in MW3. Fights happen sooner and in the open. Three habits help:

• Pick your next spot before you leave the current one. Moving more doesn’t mean sprinting into open lanes.
• Stop repeating a push that keeps failing. If one player holds an angle, take a different route instead of feeding them.
• Let the objective set your position. In Hardpoint or Domination, holding a useful spot is worth more than chasing a kill across the map.

2. Don’t ignore the new movement

MW4 adds three traversal moves, and the maps are built around them:

• Mantle slide: press slide while you’re mantling over something and you keep your momentum, gun up. Silkworm’s parked cars are spaced for exactly this.
• Pipe climbs: copper-colored drainpipes take you onto rooftops and ledges that used to be ladder-only.
• Supine slide: you can slide under garage doors on Lithium and under some vehicles, which opens flank routes.

Players from the August beta weekends have already had weeks to practice these. Xbox Wire says there’s a mobility course for them, so spend 15 minutes there before your first match instead of learning them mid-firefight. Our multiplayer beginner’s guide covers the maps they’re built for.

3. Don’t skip close-range hipfire

Infinity Ward removed bloom, the random spread that used to throw hipfire shots off target. Shots from the hip now go where the gun points. That makes hipfire a real option for SMGs and shotguns in close quarters, and aiming down sights in a doorway fight can cost you the half-second you needed.

The flip side: don’t assume your old MW3 class works the same. Give a new loadout a few matches before you judge it, not one bad game.

4. Don’t link the wrong account

Your rank, weapons, camos, Operators and Battle Pass progress save to your Activision ID, not to your PlayStation, Xbox, Steam or Nintendo account. That raises three questions.

• Which account holds my progress? The Activision ID you sign in with. If you played Modern Warfare II, MW3, Black Ops 6 or Black Ops 7, use that same one.
• Which platform accounts are linked? Activision allows exactly one account per platform provider. Check the Linked Accounts list on your profile before launch.
• What if I linked the wrong one? Per Activision’s profile support page, you can unlink a platform account only once every 12 months, and accounts under an active enforcement may not be able to unlink at all. Progress isn’t deleted, though: link that platform back to the original Activision account and it’s all there.

So check first and change once. Our crossplay and cross-progression guide walks through the linking steps.

5. Don’t buy COD Points on the wrong platform

COD Points don’t follow you. Points bought with real money stay on the store you bought them from, and points earned from the Battle Pass stay on the platform where you unlocked that tier. Items you buy with COD Points do carry across platforms.

If you play on PS5 at home and Switch 2 on the road, buy COD Points on the platform you’ll spend them on, or spend them before you switch.

6. Don’t wait until launch night to check your PC

This catches the most PC players. Activision’s TPM and Secure Boot support page says both are required for MW4, and players who don’t meet them “will be restricted from playing any online game mode.” Black Ops 7 only blocked Ranked and certain playlists.

How to check TPM 2.0: press Win+R, type tpm.msc, and look for “The TPM is ready for use.”

How to check Secure Boot: press Win+R, type msinfo32, and check that BIOS Mode says UEFI and Secure Boot State says On.

Activision also offers a free Secure Attestation Wizard that scans your BIOS and tells you whether you pass.

If something is off, you’ll need to change it in your motherboard’s firmware settings. Don’t do that blind. Follow your motherboard or PC maker’s own instructions, and if your drive uses BitLocker encryption, find your recovery key first: firmware security changes can make Windows ask for it at the next boot. Older PCs may also need the system disk converted from MBR to GPT, and Activision says encryption must be off before that conversion. That’s why this is a this-week job, not a launch-night one.

All three of Activision’s PC spec tiers also call for a 115GB SSD install, and hard drives aren’t supported. Our PC requirements guide has the full spec list.

7. Don’t forget the online subscription

On console, multiplayer and DMZ need an active online subscription: PS Plus on PS5, Game Pass Essential on Xbox and Nintendo Switch Online on Switch 2. The campaign plays without one. MW4 isn’t in Game Pass or PS Plus at launch, so you still have to buy the game. Our Game Pass and PS Plus explainer has the details.

8. Don’t skip the campaign if you care about multiplayer

Finishing the 16-mission campaign earns 16 rewards in order, and Activision says all of them carry into multiplayer and DMZ on October 23. That includes eight Base Operators, three Double XP tokens and two Double Weapon XP tokens. Weapon XP and Operator XP you earn in the campaign carry over too.

The campaign runs about seven hours on Regular, so it’s a reasonable head start on leveling. Save the XP tokens for a session when you have real time to play, on the weapon you actually plan to use. Our campaign unlocks guide lists every reward.

9. Don’t shoot the Supreme Leader’s portraits

This one is a hidden fail state in the campaign, and a light spoiler. In Following Orders, the third mission, you sit in on an interrogation in a village home. Two framed portraits of the Supreme Leader hang on the living room wall. Put a single bullet in either one and your squad, Officer Ko included, turns on you and kills you on the spot, according to All Things How. There’s no warning first.

The game then shows a one-off failure screen: “YOU DISHONORED YOUR COUNTRY BY DAMAGING A PORTRAIT OF THE SUPREME LEADER.” Shooting the TV in the same room doesn’t trigger it. It’s a mission fail, so you just hit retry. Shoot one on purpose if you want to see the screen.

10. Don’t treat DMZ like a respawn mode

DMZ is MW4’s extraction mode, and Hajin is the open-world map it’s played on. Failing to extract has real costs. Per Xbox Wire’s DMZ preview, an Operator who goes MIA can be recovered with DMZ Cash or dismissed. Recovery costs more the more Trait Points that Operator has, and recovered Operators keep their Traits but lose their gear.

You start with two Operator slots and unlock a third as you level up. A simple way to think about each run:

• Before you deploy: decide what you’re willing to lose. Learn Hajin on a cheap Operator, not your most-invested one.
• During the run: you don’t have to fight every squad you hear. Weigh your ammo, your objective and your way out.
• Once you’re carrying something good: every extra fight is a chance to lose it. Head for extraction.

Loot in your Stash is shared across all your Active Duty Operators, so extracting with something valuable on a cheap Operator still pays off for your main. Our DMZ beginner’s guide explains the FOB, crafting and deployment types.

11. Don’t expect Warzone or the full playlist on day one

The new Warzone is part of the MW4 install, but it doesn’t open until Season 1 on November 6, alongside RICOCHET Anti-Cheat for Warzone. On October 23 you get multiplayer, the campaign and DMZ.

Infinity Ward’s pre-season roadmap also adds modes after launch: Shipment returns October 27, the new Possession mode arrives October 29 and Infected follows October 30. If launch night feels light on your favorite playlist, it may still be on the way. Our roadmap story has the full schedule.

All 11 mistakes at a glance

Mistake	Who it affects	Fix it by
Playing it like MW3	Everyone in multiplayer	Your first match
Ignoring the new movement	Everyone in multiplayer	Your first match
Skipping close-range hipfire	SMG and shotgun players	Your first match
Linking the wrong account	Anyone on 2+ platforms	Before you sign in
COD Points on the wrong store	Anyone on 2+ platforms	Before you buy
PC fails TPM 2.0 / Secure Boot	PC players	This week
No online subscription	Console players	Before October 23
Skipping the campaign	Anyone wanting an XP head start	Launch week
Shooting the Supreme Leader’s portrait	Campaign players	Mission 3
Treating DMZ like a respawn mode	DMZ players	October 20
Expecting Warzone on day one	Warzone players	November 6

Most of this list has nothing to do with aim. Five of the 11 mistakes are account, hardware or expectation problems, and the PC check and account linking are the two you can’t undo quickly: one needs a firmware change, the other is locked for up to a year. The in-match lessons, from reduced cover to the removed bloom, you’ll pick up within a few games either way.

FAQ

When can I play Modern Warfare 4 multiplayer? At midnight local time on October 23. Digital pre-orders got the campaign on October 16 and DMZ on October 20.

Do I need an online subscription? On console, yes, for multiplayer and DMZ: PS Plus, Game Pass Essential or Nintendo Switch Online. The campaign doesn’t need one.

Does progress carry across platforms? Yes, through your Activision ID. COD Points are the exception and stay on the platform where you got them.

What should PC players check before launch? TPM 2.0, Secure Boot and 115GB of free SSD space. Without TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot you can’t play any online mode.

When does Warzone open? With Season 1 on November 6.

What happens if I fail to extract in DMZ? The Operator goes MIA and loses their gear. You pay DMZ Cash to recover them, keeping their Traits, or dismiss them.

This guide is based on Activision’s support documentation and blog posts, Infinity Ward’s roadmap and Xbox Wire’s developer interviews, with the campaign fail state from All Things How. We’ll update it if Activision changes any of these rules after launch.

Edited by Kerwin Stewart, Editor-in-Chief · How we report