MW4 PC Preload Starts October 15: Times, 115GB SSD and the Specs You Need

The Modern Warfare 4 countdown has reached the download stage. PC players who digitally pre-purchased the game can preload starting Thursday, October 15, four days from now. Neowin's October 10 report puts the PC preload on the 15th, ahead of Campaign Early Access on October 16. The Click reports the start as 9:00 a.m. PT, citing Activision's PC launch article. Before you hit download, check that your rig actually meets Activision's official PC requirements, because a couple of them are hard rules, not suggestions.

Preload times in the US

Based on that 9:00 a.m. PT start, according to The Click:

• Pacific: 9:00 a.m. PT, October 15
• Eastern: 12:00 p.m. ET, October 15

Preload works on all three PC storefronts: Steam, Battle.net and Xbox on PC. It is tied to the store that holds your purchase, so a copy bought on Battle.net won't show a preload button on Steam. Preloading gets the files onto your drive, but it doesn't let you play any earlier.

The key dates

• Oct 15: PC preload opens for digital pre-purchases
• Oct 16: Campaign Early Access for any digital pre-order or pre-purchase (Activision Editions page)
• Oct 20: DMZ Early Access for digital pre-orders (see our DMZ Early Access breakdown)
• Oct 23: Full launch on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2

Minimum PC specs

According to Activision Support, the floor is:

• OS: Windows 10 64-bit (latest update)
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 1400 or Intel Core i5-6600
• RAM: 8 GB
• GPU: Radeon RX 470, GeForce GTX 970/1060 or Intel Arc A580 (3 GB VRAM)
• Storage: SSD with 115 GB free at launch

The recommended tier steps up to Windows 11, a Ryzen 5 3600 or Core i7-8700, 16 GB of RAM and an RX 6600 XT, RTX 3060 Ti or Arc B580 with 8 GB of VRAM. The storage requirement doesn't change.

The rules that can lock you out

Three requirements catch players every year:

• TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot are required. Activision says "other security measures may be enforced" and links its TPM help page. Turn both on in your BIOS before the 15th, not when early access opens.
• An SSD is mandatory. The 115 GB figure is listed as SSD space, and Activision warns that mandatory updates may need extra room.
• You may need a phone number. The Steam listing says one must be linked to your account to play.

Intel Arc owners also need Resizable BAR turned on, and only CPUs with AVX support are listed. Activision's driver section says an NVIDIA driver compatible with its Advanced Shader Delivery tech is due October 21, ahead of launch.

What's next

Preload on the 15th, then jump into the campaign on the 16th (our Campaign Early Access guide has the details). If you're still choosing a storefront, keep in mind that your preload follows your purchase. We'll post any official launch-day patch notes or spec changes as soon as Activision publishes them.