Campaign Walkthrough

0:29 The campaign of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has 16 missions in this order: Mayhem, Out in the Cold, Following Orders, Hired Gun, Losing Ground, Traffic, Gone Dark, Assassins, Survivors, Stranded, Defection, Counter Attack, Escape, Entrenched, Decapitation and Greater Good. It switches between Private Park Hyun Jun's squad fighting a North Korean invasion of the South and the outlaw Captain Price's hunt for "the one pulling the strings," across Korea, Paris, New York and Mumbai (Call of Duty, Oct 16, 2026). A first run takes about 6 to 9 hours: How Long To Beat puts the main story at about 7.5 hours (via TheGamer, Oct 22, 2026), and Game Rant at 8 to 9 hours on average (Oct 16, 2026). This page walks through all of them in order with only light story detail; each mission's own page has the full walkthrough, with spoilers marked.

Quick facts

Sources: Call of Duty, TheGamer, Game Rant, PowerPyx collectibles, PowerPyx trophies.

All 16 missions and their rewards

Sources: rewards from Call of Duty (Oct 16, 2026); collectibles from PowerPyx (Oct 21, 2026); trophies from PowerPyx (Oct 18, 2026) and Insider Gaming (Oct 19, 2026).

Every reward works in Multiplayer and DMZ, and they could be used from the full launch on Oct 23, 2026 (Call of Duty). Rewards are the same on any difficulty, and no mission gives a weapon blueprint (Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026). The three Double XP Tokens and two Double Weapon XP Tokens are a head start for How to Level Up Fast; the operators are covered under Operators, and the full list under Campaign Rewards and Difficulty.

The missions in order

The paragraphs below stay spoiler-light: setting, what you do and what to watch for. The stories behind them are on Story and each mission's page.

Mission 1: Mayhem

11:20 Mayhem opens in a convenience store in Hajin City, the fictional South Korean city where you play Private Park as the invasion begins (PC Gamer, Oct 16, 2026). Its objectives are to help Dunn at the store, reach a stadium, find where an enemy convoy comes from and destroy a tunnel (TheGamer, Oct 25, 2026). The stadium fight against paratroopers holds the Skeet Shooting trophy: 10 kills before they land. The clip is Gamer's Little Playground's playthrough of the stadium fight as the paratroopers land.

Mission 2: Out in the Cold

33:19 Out in the Cold jumps back to five days before the invasion and hands you Price, tailing a target through a nightclub, over rooftops and into an alley for a hand-to-hand fight (Windows Central, Oct 17, 2026). It is the first of the campaign's melee "boss fights," where timed blocks parry and open a counter (GameSpot, Oct 16, 2026).

Mission 3: Following Orders

Following Orders is a door-to-door search of a North Korean village for a defector, played as a North Korean soldier (Windows Central). You search houses, confiscate contraband and question civilians, and how you treat them is up to you, though the story ends the same way (GameSpot). It holds the first 4 Notes and a toolbox with the code 214.

Mission 4: Hired Gun

1:02:23 Hired Gun is a running fight out of a train yard, through a warehouse, the containers and a maintenance building, ending with a fight against Graves (TheGamer). The trains move, and you can ride, climb over or crawl under them while you shoot (Kotaku, Oct 20, 2026); the Bullet Train trophy asks for 50 kills while standing on train cars.

Mission 5: Losing Ground

0:02 Losing Ground returns to Hajin City for a losing fight to hold it (PC Gamer): reach and defend a cafe, fall back to a bridge, man a mortar and run for a tunnel (TheGamer). The mortar is where Raining Thunder pops: 15 kills with three rounds in a row.

Mission 6: Traffic

0:02 Traffic is the car chase: protect a cargo van, follow Valeria, escape the pursuit (TheGamer). Price works with Valeria's cartel in Paris here (GameSpot), and hitting civilians from the speeding car fails the mission (GamesRadar+, Oct 16, 2026).

Mission 7: Gone Dark

Gone Dark splits between Price and Gaz: Price follows Valeria, Gaz reaches and clears a tower, then Price deals with Task Force 141 (TheGamer). GameSpot calls Gaz's half a "Clean House-style mission with night-vision goggles" that needs "extreme trigger discipline" around civilians (GameSpot).

Mission 8: Assassins

Assassins is a stealth escape: follow your guards, then get past a library, a kitchen and the gardens to a bunker (TheGamer). Its three door codes are 5523, 7632 and 9103 (Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026), and it holds two trophies that cannot be earned on the same run, Pacifist and Revenge (PowerPyx).

Mission 9: Survivors

Survivors is quiet and tense: follow your team, hide from soldiers and a spotlight, pick up Cho and reach a house (TheGamer). TheGamer's advice is to stay low whenever patrols appear.

Mission 10: Stranded

0:03 Stranded is the campaign's open mission. You start in a snowy, mountainous part of Korea "with nothing but a pistol" (GamesRadar+), take three main objectives in any order with fast travel between them (GameSpot), and spend supplies at a base camp on gear. It holds 58 of the 64 Notes and all 26 Yellow Supply Crates, and its progress is saved apart from the rest of the campaign (Kotaku). GamesRadar+ predicts it "will be in 'best campaign mission' debates for years." The clip is Activision's first look at the mission's snowy mountains.

Mission 11: Defection

Defection is an airbase raid: deactivate a generator, plant explosives, attack the airbase and escape it (TheGamer). TheGamer says to push the objectives rather than chase optional fights.

Mission 12: Counter Attack

Counter Attack "ramps up the scale and intensity with a massive beachfront assault" (PC Gamer). Stay close to your squad leader on the beach: straying too far kills you instantly (GamesRadar+). Long Shot asks you to snipe all 4 mortar crew.

Mission 13: Escape

Escape is stealth again: find a way out without being detected and reach the garage control room (TheGamer). It holds the last 2 Notes and a safe with the code 8410 for the Never Forgotten trophy.

Mission 14: Entrenched

0:05 Entrenched is trench warfare toward a reactor building (TheGamer). Switch to your secondary shotgun in the trenches for Trench Broom, 15 shotgun kills before the target building is secured.

Mission 15: Decapitation

Decapitation secures a landing zone and then clears a detention center's cell blocks and offices before a breach of the war room (TheGamer). Insider Gaming describes a stretch firing a mounted grenade launcher from a helicopter over a North Korean presidential palace (Insider Gaming, Oct 18, 2026).

Mission 16: Greater Good

Greater Good is the finale: escape a truck, pursue the Archer through a forest, and end it (TheGamer). What happens after is on Ending and Post-Credits Scene.

How long the campaign is

Outlets put a first run at about 6 to 9 hours. How Long To Beat's figures, via TheGamer, are about 7.5 hours for the main story, about 14 hours for everything and about 28 minutes a mission. GameSpot's reviewer finished in around eight hours on normal difficulty, longer than the 5 to 6 hours of recent Call of Duty campaigns (GameSpot, Oct 15, 2026), and Game Rant gives 8 to 9 hours on average and 14 to 16 hours for every trophy. Stranded is most of the spread: Kotaku says it takes an hour or more if you explore, while Insider Gaming says it can be done in 30 to 60 minutes.

Difficulty

There are six difficulties: Recruit, Regular, Hardened, Veteran, Realism and YOLO (Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026). Realism unlocks after you finish the campaign on any difficulty and plays with Veteran enemies, a limited HUD and lower health; YOLO unlocks after Realism and gives you one life, sending you back to Mayhem if you die or fail an objective. You can change difficulty from the menu at any time with "Change Difficulty." Only YOLO has a reward of its own, the "YOLO Completer" Calling Card (Game Rant). Four trophies need a minimum difficulty: Safety's On and Revenge need Hardened, Can't Touch This needs Veteran, and Was it Worth It? needs Realism (Insider Gaming). More on Campaign Rewards and Difficulty.

Collectibles, codes and trophies

Collectibles exist in only three missions: 4 Notes in Following Orders, 58 Notes and 26 Yellow Supply Crates in Stranded, and 2 Notes in Escape, 90 in all (PowerPyx, Oct 21, 2026). Every code the campaign asks for, per Game Rant:

Source: Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026.

PowerPyx counts 18 trophies, none missable, because every mission can be replayed from mission select after the story; Multiplayer and DMZ have none. Its roadmap is one run on any difficulty for the mission trophies and collectibles, a second on Realism, then mission select for anything left. Locations are on Campaign Collectibles and every trophy on Trophies and Achievements.

Before you start

The campaign has to be launched online once and then plays offline, with one autosave and no manual saves (PowerPyx). It can be paused at any time (Dexerto, May 28, 2026). Shooting a civilian is an instant game over in many fights (GamesRadar+), and the optional dialogue prompts add flavor without changing the story (GameSpot). The game also plays a recap of the Modern Warfare 3 events that made Price a fugitive (PC Gamer); Story and Captain Price have the background. Players who pre-ordered digitally could start on Oct 16, 2026, a week before launch (Early Access).

Frequently asked questions

How many missions are in the MW4 campaign? Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 has 16 campaign missions, from Mayhem to Greater Good. Each one gives a reward for Multiplayer and DMZ.

How long is the Modern Warfare 4 campaign? The MW4 campaign takes about 6 to 9 hours on a first run, depending on difficulty and how much of Stranded you explore. How Long To Beat puts the main story at about 7.5 hours and everything at about 14 hours.

What is the MW4 mission list in order? Mayhem, Out in the Cold, Following Orders, Hired Gun, Losing Ground, Traffic, Gone Dark, Assassins, Survivors, Stranded, Defection, Counter Attack, Escape, Entrenched, Decapitation and Greater Good.

Which MW4 missions have collectibles? Only Following Orders (4 Notes), Stranded (58 Notes and 26 Yellow Supply Crates) and Escape (2 Notes) have collectibles in Modern Warfare 4, 90 in all.

Are there missable trophies in the MW4 campaign? No. Every Modern Warfare 4 mission can be replayed from mission select after the story, so PowerPyx lists none of the 18 trophies as missable.

Do MW4 campaign rewards depend on difficulty? No. Modern Warfare 4 gives the same 16 mission rewards on any difficulty; only finishing on YOLO adds the "YOLO Completer" Calling Card.

Can you play the MW4 campaign offline? Yes. Modern Warfare 4's campaign must be launched online once, then plays offline, per PowerPyx.

Sources

• Modern Warfare 4: Campaign Early Access Now Live, Call of Duty, Oct 16, 2026
• Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, All Campaign Missions And Objectives, TheGamer, Oct 25, 2026
• How Long Does It Take To Beat Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4?, TheGamer, Oct 22, 2026
• How Long Is Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4's Campaign?, GameSpot, Oct 15, 2026
• How Long to Beat COD Modern Warfare 4 Campaign (& Full Mission List), Game Rant, Oct 16, 2026
• CoD: Modern Warfare 4 Has A Thrilling Campaign, Exciting DMZ, And Strong Multiplayer, GameSpot, Oct 16, 2026
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 review-in-progress, PC Gamer, Oct 16, 2026
• Modern Warfare 4 review, GamesRadar+, Oct 16, 2026
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 campaign review (no spoilers), Windows Central, Oct 17, 2026
• Modern Warfare 4 Review, The Greatest COD Campaign Ever, But Not Perfect, Insider Gaming, Oct 18, 2026
• Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4's Campaign Is Exactly What I Want From A Big-Budget Shooter, Kotaku, Oct 20, 2026
• Modern Warfare 4's Korea-focused campaign returns to CoD's roots, Dexerto, May 28, 2026
• All Campaign Rewards in Modern Warfare 4, Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026
• YOLO Difficulty in MW4, Explained, Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026
• All Code Solutions in Modern Warfare 4, Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026
• Pacifist Achievement Guide, Modern Warfare 4, Game Rant, Oct 19, 2026
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (2026) Trophy Guide & Roadmap, PowerPyx, Oct 18, 2026
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 (2026) Collectibles Guide, PowerPyx, Oct 21, 2026
• Complete Modern Warfare 4 Trophy List, Insider Gaming, Oct 19, 2026
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 | Campaign Trailer, Call of Duty, Sep 17, 2026 (video)
• CALL OF DUTY: MODERN WARFARE 4 Full Gameplay Walkthrough / No Commentary【FULL GAME】4K Ultra HD, Gamer's Little Playground, Oct 17, 2026 (video)
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Campaign First Look - Losing Ground, Call of Duty, Jul 30, 2026 (video)
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Campaign First Look - Traffic, Call of Duty, Aug 11, 2026 (video)
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Campaign First Look - Stranded, Call of Duty, Sep 4, 2026 (video)
• Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4 Campaign First Look - Entrenched | Playable in the MW4 Beta, Call of Duty, Aug 14, 2026 (video)