Activision's just dangling that single-player campaign like bait on a hook -- pre-order Modern Warfare 4 digitally and you get to drop in a full week early starting October 16, while the rest of the world waits until the 23rd.

It's the standard move: lock up the Vault and Standard editions behind a digital preorder paywall to juice those numbers before the full launch hits. Official Call of Duty blog and every gaming outlet from IGN to MP1st are blasting the same memo -- no physical copies, no freebies, just another week of campaign-only head start for the whales who bit early.

Community on X is already split between the "finally some respect for the story mode" crowd and the "another preorder scam" takes, with some pointing out it's basically just buying the game early for a tiny slice of content. Either way, the full game drops October 23 and the real test begins.