Modern Warfare 4 Early Access Already Outpaces Black Ops 7 on Steam

Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare 4 has not yet reached its October 23, 2026 release date, but its early access period is already producing a Modern Warfare 4 Steam player count that outpaces the last Call of Duty launch. On its first day, the early access build peaked above 108,000 concurrent players on Steam, according to SteamDB tracker data cited by Adam Corsetti. That figure edges past the roughly 100,000-player peak that Black Ops 7 recorded during its launch weekend in November 2025.

A modest gap with larger context

The comparison is not a blowout. A difference of several thousand players would be easy to overlook in isolation. What gives it weight is the timing: Modern Warfare 4 is in early access, with only the campaign available, while Black Ops 7 was at full launch. The early access number also stands against a much higher benchmark from 2024, when Black Ops 6 reached 313,000 concurrent players during its launch period.

Black Ops 7 never climbed above its launch weekend level on Steam, according to the tracker data. Its sales were disappointing, and Activision has been looking to Modern Warfare 4 to revive interest in the series. Early access began before the October 23 release, giving the campaign an unusual head start in the public conversation.

Ratings tell a sharper story

Player sentiment on Steam separates the two titles more than the raw counts do. Modern Warfare 4 currently holds an 84% Steam rating. Black Ops 7 sits at 38.71%. Among recent entries, Black Ops 3, released in 2015, holds an 84.36% rating, which places the new game close to that older high-water mark.

SteamDB aggregates data across multiple Call of Duty titles, so individual game figures require care. The brief’s player counts are attributed to the tracker, and the ratings come from Steam reviews. Even with those caveats, the direction is consistent: early access players are responding well to what they can play.

Campaign carries the early access load

During early access, the campaign is the main offering. Multiplayer is not yet fully available. Players have described the narrative as compelling, with returning characters and newcomers sharing the screen. John Price is among the returning figures shown. Cinematic sequences are well produced, and the missions vary enough to make the single-player portion stand out.

The campaign lasts eight hours or less. That brevity may limit how long early access alone can sustain a large audience, but it has not stopped players from engaging with the story first.

Multiplayer arrives in stages

The staggered rollout begins with DMZ extraction mode on October 20. Three days later, 6×6 and Ground War modes arrive. That schedule means the full multiplayer suite will not be available until after the October 23 release date.

A late-August multiplayer open beta drew mixed impressions. Participants mostly praised the shooting mechanics, but powerful aim assist was controversial, and spawning too close to enemies was a recurring issue. Those concerns remain open questions as the wider multiplayer rollout approaches.

What the numbers can and cannot show

Early access momentum is not the same as long-term health. The Steam player count over the coming weeks will depend on how competitive online play is received, and whether beta issues such as spawning are addressed. The exact peak beyond 108,000 is unknown, as is the precise launch peak for Black Ops 7 beyond roughly 100,000. Sales figures for both titles have not been disclosed.

For now, Modern Warfare 4 has cleared the first public test. It has drawn a larger early access crowd than Black Ops 7 managed at launch, and it has done so with a campaign-first offering and a far stronger Steam rating. Whether that translates into a lasting revival for the series will be settled in multiplayer.