{"id":2053453,"date":"2026-07-21T08:37:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T05:37:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2053453"},"modified":"2026-07-21T08:37:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T05:37:17","slug":"modern-warfare-4-open-and-closed-beta-dates-announced-including-for-switch-2-alongside-the-return-of-call-of-duty-next","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2053453","title":{"rendered":"Modern Warfare 4 open and closed beta dates announced, including for Switch 2, alongside the return of Call of Duty: Next"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">Modern Warfare 4 open and closed beta dates announced, including for Switch 2, alongside the return of Call of Duty: Next<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Handheld combat.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-1.jpeg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-1.jpeg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Infinity Ward, Activision.<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Sherif Saed avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"IMG_1950_Uy1XomJ.JPG\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"1638\" height=\"1346\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/sherif-saed\">Sherif Saed<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Senior Contributor<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-07-21T08:37:17+00:00\">July 21, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"31dedeaf-c428-48ab-8726-b3298dff1dc6\" data-name=\"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\" title=\"Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)\"><br \/>\n  Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026)<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Activision has finally revealed some worthwhile new details about what the next few months will look like in the lead-up to the release of Modern Warfare 4. The company officially announced the return of Call of Duty: Next, the event that has, for the last several years, served as the home for the debut of multiplayer gameplay.<\/p>\n<p>This year&#8217;s Next event, set for 21st August, will seemingly switch to being entirely online rather than in person; Activision referred to it as &#8220;a global event&#8221;. You can expect a developer briefing on what the show will feature, before it throws it to live gameplay from creators.<\/p>\n<p>This is not the only thing being done differently this year, as the beta will also begin after the broadcast&#8217;s conclusion, rather than a day later. The Modern Warfare 4 beta takes place over two weekends. The first is only available to players who pre-ordered the full game, while the second is open to all.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-2.jpeg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-2.jpeg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Infinity Ward, Activision.<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This year, the first leg of the beta takes place 21st-25th August across PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X\/S. The open portion follows from 28th August to 1st September. The latter is when the game will be playable on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/platforms\/switch-2\">Switch 2<\/a> for the first time, alongside the other platforms from the prior portion. Speaking of which, Activision finally confirmed that Switch 2 pre-orders will go live on 26th August.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.callofduty.com\/blog\/2026\/07\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-open-beta-next-fanatics-fest-recap-serialized-camo-preorder-bonus\">Call of Duty blog post<\/a> didn&#8217;t share details about what we can expect from the beta, but did confirm it will feature 19 weapons playable across a variety of maps ranging from small, 3v3 maps, to large battles featuring vehicles. In terms of modes, the post name-dropped Search &amp; Destroy alongside new arrival Kill Block. The beta will also include the Training Mobility Course, which is seemingly designed to teach players how to master the game&#8217;s new movement mechanics.<\/p>\n<p>The news follows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-kill-block-first-look\">a weekend of Modern Warfare 4 gameplay livestreams from Fanatics Fest NYC<\/a>, where a handful of creators got to demonstrate multiplayer gameplay for the first time. Aside from this being a strange way to debut multiplayer footage, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-gameplay-debut-community-reactions\">players were also divided about what they saw<\/a>, especially the rapid pace of combat and high movement speed.<\/p>\n<p>Modern Warfare 4 is set for release 23rd October on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X\/S and Switch 2.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Activision has finally revealed some worthwhile new details about what the next few months will look like in the lead-up to the release of Modern Warfare 4. The company officially announced the return of Call of Duty: Next, the event that has, for the last several years, served as the home for the debut of multiplayer gameplay.<\/p>\n<p>This year&#8217;s Next event, set for 21st August, will seemingly switch to being entirely online rather than in person; Activision referred to it as &#8220;a global event&#8221;. You can expect a developer briefing on what the show will feature, before it throws it to live gameplay from creators.<\/p>\n<p>This is not the only thing being done differently this year, as the beta will also begin after the broadcast&#8217;s conclusion, rather than a day later. The Modern Warfare 4 beta takes place over two weekends. The first is only available to players who pre-ordered the full game, while the second is open to all.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt height=\"1080\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-2.jpeg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><\/p>\n<p><img alt data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-lightbox data-uri=\"modern-warfare-4-multiplayer-beta-screen-2.jpeg\" height=\"1080\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1.7777777777777777\" width=\"1920\"><figcaption><span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Infinity Ward, Activision.<\/cite><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>This year, the first leg of the beta takes place 21st-25th August across PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X\/S. The open portion follows from 28th August to 1st September. The latter is when the game will be playable on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/platforms\/switch-2\">Switch 2<\/a> for the first time, alongside the other platforms from the prior portion. Speaking of which, Activision finally confirmed that Switch 2 pre-orders will go live on 26th August.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.callofduty.com\/blog\/2026\/07\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-open-beta-next-fanatics-fest-recap-serialized-camo-preorder-bonus\">Call of Duty blog post<\/a> didn&#8217;t share details about what we can expect from the beta, but did confirm it will feature 19 weapons playable across a variety of maps ranging from small, 3v3 maps, to large battles featuring vehicles. In terms of modes, the post name-dropped Search &amp; Destroy alongside new arrival Kill Block. The beta will also include the Training Mobility Course, which is seemingly designed to teach players how to master the game&#8217;s new movement mechanics.<\/p>\n<p>The news follows <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-kill-block-first-look\">a weekend of Modern Warfare 4 gameplay livestreams from Fanatics Fest NYC<\/a>, where a handful of creators got to demonstrate multiplayer gameplay for the first time. Aside from this being a strange way to debut multiplayer footage, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/call-of-duty-modern-warfare-4-gameplay-debut-community-reactions\">players were also divided about what they saw<\/a>, especially the rapid pace of combat and high movement speed.<\/p>\n<p>Modern Warfare 4 is set for release 23rd October on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X\/S and Switch 2.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026) Modern Warfare 4 open and closed beta dates announced, including for Switch 2, alongside the return of Call of Duty: Next Handheld combat. Image credit: Infinity Ward, Activision. News by Sherif Saed Senior Contributor Published on July 21, 2026 Follow Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-2053453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2053453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2053453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2053453\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2053453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2053453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2053453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}