Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 Pre-Orders Launch with a Reminder: ‘Not Available on Xbox Game Pass This Year’

After two years of being a day-one title on Xbox Game Pass, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will not be available on the subscription service at launch. This shift from Microsoft has raised eyebrows, especially with a new pre-order advertisement explicitly stating that Modern Warfare 4 won’t be part of Game Pass in 2026.

A user on a gaming forum shared their surprise after seeing the ad on social media, noting, “It’s from the official account, so I assume it’s a legit official asset. Just wild for them to know things are so messy and confusing that their social ads need to have specific callouts like this.” The ad promotes “Lock-in campaign early access,” a bonus for pre-ordering the game, but it raises the question: why would players on Xbox Series X/S or PC pre-order a game that’s expected to be on Game Pass? Activision seems to be addressing this concern directly with the ad’s second part, which states, “Not on Xbox Game Pass this year.”

The marketing dilemma comes after Microsoft decided to remove new annual Call of Duty releases from the subscription service back in April. This move likely stemmed from the realization that having Call of Duty available on Game Pass at launch significantly increased costs, leading to a drop in subscribers. Additionally, sales of last year’s Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 were reportedly disappointing enough to cause concern, with estimates suggesting that including Black Ops 6 on Game Pass at launch cost Microsoft around $300 million in lost revenue.

There’s a clear hope that returning Modern Warfare 4 to a traditional release model will help stabilize the situation. However, using “Not on Xbox Game Pass” as a subtle warning in pre-order marketing highlights the contradictions currently facing Microsoft’s gaming division. The company aims to generate excitement for its console ecosystem with exclusive perks and titles, yet it also needs to maximize revenue by making its biggest games available across multiple platforms, encouraging players to pay full price.

For years, Xbox has championed the mantra of “play it on Game Pass.” That’s no longer the case for Call of Duty.