Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will skip Xbox Game Pass at launch in 2026. Pre-order advertisements from the official account explicitly state the game is not available on the subscription service this year.
Activision is running Facebook ads for the upcoming title that highlight early access bonuses for pre-orders. The ads also include the line “Not on Xbox Game Pass this year” to address potential confusion among players.
Microsoft had announced in April that new annual Call of Duty releases would no longer arrive on Game Pass at launch. The change follows two years of day-one availability for prior entries.
Bloomberg reported that including last year’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 on the service at launch cost Microsoft around $300 million in lost revenue. Sales performance of that title also contributed to the decision. The shift coincides with leadership changes at Xbox under CEO Asha Sharma. Modern Warfare 4, due October 23, will include an expanded DMZ extraction mode; digital pre-orders on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S or Switch 2 grant early campaign access. The ads also target casual players who may not follow gaming news closely.
