Modern Warfare 4: editions, early access, best price

Modern Warfare 4 launches on 23 October, and digital pre-orders start the campaign on 16 October. Standard or Vault, Game Pass, and where to buy it.

Guide · By getcheapgames · · · 6 min read

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is eleven days away, and its campaign opens a week earlier for digital pre-orders. Here is what each edition adds and the cheapest copy that will actually work in Ireland today.

The short version

  • Release: Friday 23 October 2026, on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC (Steam, Battle.net and the Xbox app) and Nintendo Switch 2. There is no PS4 or Xbox One version.
  • Editions: Standard (digital or disc) and Vault (digital only). In Ireland they cost €79.99 and €109.99 on PS5, Xbox and Switch 2, and €69.99 and €99.99 on Steam.
  • Game Pass: not at launch; expect it around late 2027.
  • Cheapest valid key for Ireland: €61.32 for the Standard Edition on Xbox, a Europe key on Kinguin, before the marketplace's checkout fee. That price is from 12 October 2026 and changes daily.
  • Our pick: the Standard Edition, bought digitally if you want to play the campaign early.

Editions, platforms and Game Pass

Standard Edition

The full game: campaign, multiplayer and the DMZ extraction mode. Every digital pre-order or pre-purchase, on any platform, adds:

  • Campaign Early Access from Friday 16 October, a week before launch
  • DMZ Early Access from Tuesday 20 October
  • the Hunter Killer Operator skin, the Gilded Pearl camo pack and the Inner Circuit weapon blueprint

Both dates are Pacific time, so the hour in Ireland may differ. Physical copies (PS5 and Xbox Series X discs, and a Switch 2 retail version) are the base game only: Activision lists early access and the bonuses for digital editions, and a physical copy cannot be upgraded to Vault.

Vault Edition

Digital only. Everything in Standard, plus:

  • Two operator packs: Hostile Alliance (Price, Valeria, Ghost and Blix) and Special Forces (French, German, South Korean and British units, each voiced in its own language)
  • Signature Weapon Collection: five weapons, each with a blueprint
  • One season of BlackCell: that season's battle pass with 20 tier skips and 1,100 COD Points, plus an exclusive operator and blueprint, starting with Season 1, which has no date yet
  • DMZ Deployment Bonus: an extra Active Duty slot and a kit of extra gear

Upgrades and the loyalty discount

A digital Standard copy can be upgraded to Vault later on the same platform, for €30 on the Xbox Store and on Steam. If you have owned and played a premium Call of Duty from Modern Warfare (2019) onwards, official stores take 10% off the Vault Edition until 23 October, on the same platform account: about €99 on PS5 and Xbox, about €90 on Steam. The discount does not apply to the upgrade.

Where you can play it

  • PS5: PlayStation Store, €79.99 or €109.99. It lists the release at 23:00 UTC on 22 October, midnight in Ireland.
  • Xbox Series X|S: Xbox Store, €79.99 or €109.99, which also covers Xbox on PC through Xbox Play Anywhere.
  • PC: Steam at €69.99 or €99.99, Battle.net, or a Windows-only version on the Xbox Store at the same prices. Activision requires TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot.
  • Nintendo Switch 2: eShop, €79.99 or €109.99. A native version, with cross-play and cross-progression.

On consoles, online play needs PlayStation Plus, Game Pass Essential or Nintendo Switch Online.

Game Pass

The Xbox Store says the game is not on Game Pass this year. When Microsoft cut the price of Game Pass Ultimate in April, it said new Call of Duty games would join Ultimate and PC Game Pass the following holiday season, about a year after release, which points to late 2027 for Modern Warfare 4.

Video: youtube.com/watch?v=jLbst85USN8

The cheapest legit prices today

All prices below are for Ireland, checked on 12 October 2026, and they change daily. Live prices are on our Modern Warfare 4 page.

Standard Edition

  • Xbox, Europe key: €61.32 at Kinguin, against €79.99 on the Xbox Store
  • Switch 2, Europe key: €74.89 at Kinguin, against €79.99 on the eShop
  • PS5 and PC: no keys on GCG today, so buy from the official stores; on PC that is €69.99

Vault Edition

No Vault key that works in Ireland today. The two Xbox keys on our Vault Edition page, at €75.22 and €93.02, are United States and Rest of World keys.

Cheaper Xbox Standard keys, at €59.52 and €61.99, are Rest of World and US keys that may not activate on an Irish account, so we mark them separately; see how we rank offers.

These are listed prices. Kinguin adds a service fee at checkout, and some payment methods add their own, so the real saving on the Xbox key is smaller than the headline €18.67, and the €5.10 gap on Switch 2 may vanish. Our price table also shows a 5% Kinguin coupon code beside these offers; the prices above do not include it.

Buying a key from a marketplace

  • You buy from a third-party seller, so check their rating and the refund terms.
  • Early access is tied to digital pre-orders. If 16 October matters, make sure the listing mentions the pre-order bonuses and delivers the code before then.
  • PC is not guaranteed. An Xbox Store purchase covers PC, but a key may not; only count on it if the listing says so.

Which edition, for which player

Campaign players

Standard, digital. The Xbox Europe key is cheapest today; elsewhere, the official store is the surest route to early access.

Multiplayer and DMZ regulars

Vault is worth it if you would buy a BlackCell season anyway; the rest is operators, blueprints and a DMZ head start. With the loyalty discount it is about €99 on PS5 or Xbox. On Xbox, the €61.32 key plus the €30 upgrade comes to €91.32 before Kinguin's fee, with no loyalty history needed.

PC players

Steam's €69.99 is €10 below the console price. If you also play on an Xbox, the €79.99 Xbox Store version covers both.

PS5 and Switch 2 players

With no PS5 keys, the PlayStation Store's €79.99 is the price. On Switch 2, the fee can wipe out the key's saving, so compare totals.

Game Pass subscribers

Wait about a year if you can. To play at launch, you have to buy it.

Checklist before you pay

  1. Right platform: no PS4 or Xbox One version; PC needs TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot.
  2. Right region: Europe or Global keys for Ireland, not Rest of World or US.
  3. Digital if you want to play early: the campaign from 16 October, DMZ from 20 October.
  4. Buying Vault on an official store? Look for the 10% loyalty discount before 23 October.
  5. Marketplaces add a service fee at checkout, so compare what you would pay there against the official price.
  6. Check the seller's rating and the delivery date.

Sources

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