Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 hits PC on October 23, 2026, and the beta is only days out. If you're planning a build or checking whether your current rig is ready, two things are locked down and one is not. MW4 requires TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot on PC, and Infinity Ward has confirmed DLSS 4.5 and ray tracing for the players who want the visual bells and whistles. What's still missing is the part everyone wants most, the actual CPU, GPU, and RAM numbers, which Activision hasn't published. So plan around what's confirmed, and treat the rest as an educated read until the official sheet lands.
Modern Warfare 4 PC requirements: confirmed vs expected
| Requirement | Confirmed (Steam / Activision) | Expected (based on recent CoD) |
|---|---|---|
| Launch date | October 23, 2026 | Beta Aug 21 to Sept 1 |
| Platforms | PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2 | First Modern Warfare to skip PS4 and Xbox One |
| OS and processor | 64-bit OS and processor | Windows 10 (22H2) or Windows 11 |
| Security | TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot required | Enforced at launch, no workaround |
| PC graphics | DLSS 4.5, ray tracing across all modes, competitive presets | FSR and XeSS support likely |
| Steam account | Phone number must be linked | Standard for recent CoD |
| CPU tier | Not yet published | 6-core Ryzen 5 or Core Ultra 5 class for high FPS |
| GPU tier | Not yet published | RTX 5060-class for 1080p, RTX 5070-class for 1440p |
| RAM | Not yet published | 16GB minimum, 32GB if you run Discord, a browser, or OBS alongside |
| Storage | Not yet published | 120 to 150GB SSD, HDD unlikely to be supported |
What's confirmed for Modern Warfare 4 on PC
Modern Warfare 4 launches October 23, 2026 across a wide spread of platforms: PC through Steam, Battle.net, and Xbox on PC, plus PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch 2 (Xbox Wire). The detail that matters for builders is what it drops. This is the first Modern Warfare to leave PS4 and Xbox One behind entirely, so its PC floor sits at or above the most recent Call of Duty games rather than dragging along old console-era minimums.
Two hard requirements are already locked on the Steam listing. MW4 needs a 64-bit OS and processor, and it needs TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot switched on. You also have to link a phone number to your Steam account. The detailed CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage numbers are still marked as not published, which is normal for Call of Duty. Activision usually posts the real sheet a few weeks before the beta or launch.
The graphics side is where Infinity Ward has said more than usual this early. MW4 confirms DLSS 4.5 with frame generation and multiple upscaling options, plus expanded ray tracing across Campaign, Multiplayer, and DMZ, covering reflections, ambient occlusion, shadows, and volumetrics (VideoCardz). There's also a set of pre-tuned competitive settings built around frame rate and responsiveness. Read that split the right way. The ray tracing is there for people who want the game to look incredible, and competitive players will flip those effects off, load the competitive preset, and lean on DLSS to push frames. It's an NVIDIA-friendly feature set either way, since DLSS is NVIDIA-only.
The timing helps if you want to test a rig before you commit. Early access runs August 21 to 25 for players who pre-order, and the open beta runs August 28 to September 1 for everyone. If your machine gets into the beta cleanly, it'll handle launch.
What the hardware will probably look like
The official numbers aren't out yet, so what follows is an educated read, not a spec sheet. Because MW4 targets current-gen hardware only and builds on the published requirements for Black Ops 6 and Black Ops 7, a machine that runs it well at 1080p lands around an RTX 5060-class GPU, a 6-core CPU like the Ryzen 5 9600X, and 16GB of RAM. For 1440p at the high frame rates competitive players chase, step up to an RTX 5070-class card. 32GB of RAM is smart at this tier too, not for frames but because higher-end setups usually run more background apps that would otherwise push a 16GB rig into swap. If you're shopping the budget end, our Arc B580 vs RX 9060 XT breakdown covers what each entry card gives you at 1080p.
Storage is the sneaky one. Recent Call of Duty installs pushed past 100GB, so budget 120 to 150GB of free SSD space and keep it on an NVMe or SATA drive, since an HDD almost certainly won't be supported. Call of Duty also leans on your CPU and memory speed harder than most single-player games. Holding a high, stable frame rate in a twitch shooter is a CPU job as much as a GPU one, and that shapes what we'd put in a build.
Modern Warfare 4 TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot: how to turn them on
This one catches people out on launch night. MW4 won't boot without TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot enabled, both there as an anti-cheat measure, and neither is optional. Plenty of PCs have the hardware for both but ship with them switched off in the BIOS, so the game refuses to start and the reason isn't obvious.
Checking takes a minute. In Windows, run tpm.msc to see your TPM status, and look at the Secure Boot State line in System Information. If either is off, you turn it on in the BIOS, usually under security or boot options. We walk through exactly where those settings live in our first six things to do after building a gaming PC guide, since it's the same BIOS pass.
Buy from us and it's already handled. Every META PCs build ships with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 enabled out of the box, so Modern Warfare 4, Battlefield 6, Fortnite, and Valorant all just launch. No BIOS wrestling on release night while your friends are already in a lobby.
What we'd build for Modern Warfare 4
Call of Duty rewards frame rate over eye candy, and MW4's own competitive presets make that official. The build follows from there: a strong CPU, fast RAM, and an NVIDIA GPU that gets you DLSS 4.5 and Reflex, since Reflex is the piece that trims input latency in a gunfight.
For most players, the Phantom v4 is the pick. It runs an RTX 5060 Ti 16GB with a Ryzen 5 9600X, so you get NVENC, DLSS 4.5, and Reflex, and it clears the expected 1080p and 1440p tiers without drama. It ships with 16GB of RAM, which is plenty for the game itself. If you run Discord, a browser, and OBS alongside, bump it to 32GB in the custom builder before it ships so background apps don't push you into swap territory.
If you want the version that does everything, the TROOPER is the one we'd point a serious player toward. It pairs an RTX 5070 Ti with 32GB of DDR5-6000 already in place and a Ryzen 7 9850X3D chip, and that X3D cache is exactly what Call of Duty frame rates feed on. It holds high frames at 1440p on the competitive settings, and it has the headroom to switch the ray tracing on when you'd rather admire the campaign. The full lineup is on our ready-to-ship page.
Both ship with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 already on. They're tested before they leave the shop and backed by lifetime US-based support. And with RAM and GPU prices where they sit this year, buying a machine that's ready for launch day beats sourcing parts in this market, which we get into in our RAMageddon buying guide.
FAQ
What are the official Modern Warfare 4 PC requirements?
Activision has confirmed the platform-level requirements so far: a 64-bit OS and processor, TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, and a phone number linked to your Steam account. The detailed CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage numbers haven't been published yet and usually land a few weeks before launch. Anything more specific you see right now is a prediction, not an official figure.
Do I need TPM 2.0 and Secure Boot to play Modern Warfare 4?
Yes, both are required and enforced as anti-cheat, and the game won't launch without them. Most modern PCs support both but ship with them off in the BIOS. Check your TPM by running tpm.msc, and check your Secure Boot state in System Information, then enable either one in the BIOS under security or boot options. Every build we ship already has them on.
Does Modern Warfare 4 support DLSS and ray tracing?
Yes, Infinity Ward has confirmed DLSS 4.5 with frame generation on PC, along with other upscaling options, and expanded ray tracing across Campaign, Multiplayer, and DMZ. Competitive players can skip the ray tracing and run the pre-tuned competitive settings for maximum frames, while DLSS 4.5 helps push higher frame rates either way. DLSS is NVIDIA-only, so it factors into which GPU you pick.
How much storage does Modern Warfare 4 need?
Activision hasn't posted a figure, but recent Call of Duty games installed past 100GB, so plan for 120 to 150GB of free SSD space plus room for day-one patches. Keep the install on an NVMe or SATA SSD, since an HDD almost certainly won't be supported.
Ready to build
Modern Warfare 4 isn't a bleeding-edge ask, but it does need TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, and enough CPU and RAM to hold high frames in a fast shooter. Sort those and you're set for launch day and the Warzone integration that follows in Season 1.
If you'd rather not sort the spec sheet yourself, our ready-to-ship builds arrive tested with Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 already on, and our custom PC builder lets you dial in the exact GPU and RAM your play style needs.
