Modern Warfare 4 Release Times: Early Access Starts October 16

Planning to jump into Modern Warfare 4 the second it goes live? Your start time depends on one big question: did you preorder digitally?

If you did, you're getting early access to the campaign starting October 16. Then DMZ, the extraction shooter mode fans have been waiting to see revived, unlocks early on October 20. That's a solid head start before everyone else piles in.

If you're going physical or just holding off, no stress. The full release lands on October 23 at midnight local time, wherever you are. That local-time launch is handy, since you don't have to do timezone math to figure out when you can play.

One thing that's still up in the air: Activision hasn't revealed an exact unlock time for the campaign early access on the 16th. Same story for the DMZ early access on October 20, there's been no official word on timing yet. Some sources predict the DMZ unlock could hit at 10 am PT, which works out to 1 pm ET or 6 pm BST, but treat that as a prediction rather than a confirmed schedule.

What we do know is that PC preload is already live, so you can get the download out of the way now. You'll want to clear some space too, because the game needs 115GB of storage. If you're on PC and want to check whether your rig can handle it, the official system requirements are up on the Steam page.

As the DMZ unlock and the full release get closer, expect official time announcements from Activision to fill in the gaps. Until then, the safe play is to preorder digitally if early access matters to you, and get that preload started.

Will you be preordering for the early access, or waiting for the October 23 launch?