Modern Warfare 4 DMZ: Hajin Map, FOB and What Carries Over

As of October 10, 2026, Modern Warfare 4 DMZ launches October 23, with Early Access from October 20 for digital pre-orders. It takes place on Hajin, a radiation-hit exclusion zone where Korea meets Russia. Between runs you return to a Forward Operating Base. Your Stash, XP and Operator Traits persist; if you fail to extract, carried items are lost unless stored in a Secure Slot.

This is a pre-launch overview. Everything below comes from what Activision and Infinity Ward have said so far, mainly the June 6 DMZ Initial Intel post on the Call of Duty blog and the two October DMZ Deep Dive posts. DMZ was not part of the August beta, which included Multiplayer, a playable Campaign mission, Ground War: Combat Outpost and Warzone Resurgence. Where something has not been announced, we say so. We will rewrite this page after launch, once the mode is live.

When Modern Warfare 4 DMZ launches

PlayStation’s own announcement was headlined Campaign, Multiplayer, and DMZ launches October 23, so DMZ is part of launch day, not a later drop. Campaign Early Access starts October 16, and on October 9 Activision’s DMZ Deep Dive, Part 2 confirmed DMZ Early Access from October 20 for the same digital pre-orders and pre-purchases, Standard Digital or Vault Edition. Activision has not published a start hour for either window. Our MW4 DMZ Early Access guide covers who qualifies, and our Modern Warfare 4 release date guide has the full timeline.

DMZ comes to every platform the game launches on: Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, PC through Battle.net, Steam and Xbox on PC, and Nintendo Switch 2.

Is Modern Warfare 4 DMZ free to play?

Not confirmed. The original DMZ was a free beta bundled with Warzone 2.0 in 2022. This time Activision presents DMZ as one of Modern Warfare 4’s three modes, next to Campaign and Multiplayer. It has not said you can play it without buying the game. Windows Central’s reveal coverage says DMZ is not expected to be free and that you will need Modern Warfare 4 to play it. Microsoft’s store listing adds that the game is not on Xbox Game Pass this year.

The Hajin map: setting and points of interest

Hajin is an exclusion zone in a border area where Russia, North Korea and South Korea meet. In the story, the area is left saturated with radiation, abandoned military technology and weapons stockpiles after the events of the Modern Warfare 4 Campaign. You play as an off-the-books CIA asset sent to secure that technology before hostile forces get it. Activision calls Hajin one of the largest Call of Duty environments ever built. It has not published an exact size or compared it to Al Mazrah or any other map.

The official blog names four areas: the irradiated Fallout reactor, the Prison complex, Hajin City and the Military Base. Reveal coverage from Windows Central and Gaming Trend lists nine points of interest at launch:

• Hajin City
• Casino (it has a vault squads can try to break into)
• Fallout, the reactor area in the east of the map, where you need a gas mask and where some loot only appears
• Hospital
• Military Base
• Farmlands
• Prison
• Broadcast
• Town (Gaming Trend calls it “Deadtown”)

The two outlets disagree on the name of the ninth area, and Activision’s own post does not list all nine. Treat the list as the reveal-day list, not the final in-game map legend.

Weather changes between runs and during a match. Rain cuts visibility, and fog can cover familiar routes. Some areas can only be entered from the water. The map also has sealed and secret areas, according to the blog, and designer Joe Cecot told Xbox Wire that one police station armory has a hole leading to an underwater route.

What you do in DMZ: Story Missions, Dynamic Ops and Free Roam

Before you deploy, you pick what you want to do. According to Windows Central, squad fill matches you with players who picked the same activity, but everyone shares the same server, so a squad on Free Roam can run into one doing a Story Mission.

• Story Missions: written to continue the Modern Warfare 4 story, set at specific points of interest, playable solo or in a squad and built to be replayed.
• Dynamic Operations: multi-step objectives generated fresh for each match, such as securing assets, rescue operations or assaults on hostile forces.
• Side Ops: smaller tasks, such as finding and repairing trucks around Hajin (Cecot says they carry a UAV), finding lost supply drops and climbing damaged radio towers.
• Free Roam: no set objective; loot, hunt Lieutenants or other players, or break into the Casino vault.

Hajin also has a threat system. The more attention you draw, the more the AI escalates, from reinforcements and attack helicopters up to heavily armored troops and enemy Deathstalkers sent to hunt you down. Lieutenants, the boss-level enemies, roam the map with their own units. For solo players there is a Stealth Meter that turns from white to yellow to orange as an AI enemy is about to spot you.

The DMZ FOB: what the Forward Operating Base does

The FOB is where you start and end every run. It is also a social hub, in third person by default so you can see your squad. The station list below is from the June post; Activision showed the FOB in its October 9 Deep Dive, Part 2. Its stations include:

The FOB itself upgrades as you earn DMZ XP. New stations unlock and the base changes visually as you rank up. Part 2 gives the unlock points: the 3D Printer at DMZ Player Level 2, the Boss Board after your second DMZ Order, the Vendor at level 5, the Gunsmith at level 10 and a Dog Tag Case at level 20. DMZ has its own progression track up to level 70.

The Vault Edition has several DMZ extras listed in Part 2:

• A third Active Duty Operator slot from the start (everyone else starts with two).
• A Vault Edition Deployment Kit with two each of Weapon Insurance Contracts, Operator Rescue Beacons, Fulton Drop Markers, Medium Backpacks and 2-Plate Carriers.
• One-time access to the Vault Edition Signature Weapon Collection Blueprints in your DMZ inventory, with a Gunsmith discount if you lose them in a deployment.

Activision’s May pre-order and editions post called the Vault extra a DMZ Deployment Bonus; Part 2 does not say whether that bonus is the same thing as the Deployment Kit.

MW4 Vault Edition Steam AccountVault Edition owners start DMZ with three Active Duty Operator slots instead of two.From $74.90View offer

What carries over in DMZ, and what you lose

This is the part most people ask about, because DMZ is an extraction shooter: gear you bring in is at risk until you get out. Here is what Activision has confirmed.

What you keep between runs

• XP, even if you die. Global and DMZ XP from Missions, Ops and kills count whether you extract or not. Activision says there is no XP penalty for dying.
• Your Stash. Items stored at the FOB stay there from deployment to deployment.
• Each Operator’s Backpack, Loadout and Trait Tree. These persist across multiple runs for that Operator.
• Trait Points. They are tied to the Operator who earned them and spent in three Trait Trees: Warfighter, Scout and Survivalist. Each Operator can earn up to 18, one per Dog Tag level, and can then be prestiged for a permanent Trait; our DMZ Operator Prestige guide has the requirements.
• Weapon progression. It is shared between Multiplayer and DMZ, and the weapon camo track spans Multiplayer, DMZ and Warzone, with three Mastery Camos per mode, according to the Call of Duty: NEXT recap.

What you lose if you fail to extract

Activision says rewards, equipment and resources stay on the line until you extract. The exception, per Part 2, is a Secure Slot: upgraded Backpacks have them, and anything placed in one is kept if you fail to exfil. Exfil options include helicopters and skyhooks. If an Operator is lost in action, they go MIA. You get them back through the MIA system: spend in-game cash at the FOB to send a rescue team. Activision’s Part 2 confirms the cost is set by the Operator’s Trait Points: the more Traits, the more expensive the return, and a recovered Operator comes back without gear. That is why the developers suggest keeping a second Operator as a “cash mule” to earn the rescue money.

When you go down with no self-revive, you always get one Tourniquet. It brings you back up in a wounded state, and you then need medical items to heal to full. Cecot told Xbox Wire that Operators spawn in with 150 health.

What has not been announced

• Whether the Stash or Operators reset at the start of a new season (Cecot only says the Boss Board is something you work through each season).
• Whether anything carries over from the 2022 DMZ beta.
• Whether anything carries over from Black Ops 7. Our Black Ops 7 to Modern Warfare 4 carry-forward guide covers what is known for the game as a whole.
• Maximum squad size and players per server.

Windows Central compares the Operator-based progression to Black Ops 7’s Endgame. If you played it, our Black Ops 7 Endgame guide shows how that system worked.

PvP in DMZ: bounties, dog tags and proximity chat

Other squads and solo players share Hajin with you. Killing rival Operators raises your notoriety and puts a bounty on you, which makes you easier to track. Rival dog tags you extract pay out, and top players land on the Bounty Leaderboard. Lieutenants drop a dog tag case when they die. Everyone in the match can see it, so squads carrying one are likely to be ambushed at exfil.

Proximity chat returns with distance falloff, direction and room-based echo, so you can hear roughly where a rival squad is and try to talk your way out of a fight.

Modern Warfare 4 accounts and codes for DMZ

Our Modern Warfare 4 accounts and Modern Warfare 4 redeem codes are available. DMZ services will be added once the mode is live and we have played it.

MW4 Standard Edition Steam AccountModern Warfare 4 Standard Edition; DMZ is one of the game's three launch modes.From $44.90View offer MW4 Double XP + Double Weapon XP Tokens (60 Min Each)Weapon progression is shared between Multiplayer and DMZ.From $8.99View offer

Modern Warfare 4 DMZ FAQ

Is DMZ in Modern Warfare 4 at launch?

Yes. DMZ launches with the game on October 23, 2026, and digital pre-orders get DMZ Early Access from October 20. Campaign Early Access starts earlier, on October 16.

What is the Modern Warfare 4 DMZ map called?

Hajin, an exclusion zone on the border of Russia and the Korean peninsula. Hajin is also coming to Warzone as a Battle Royale map in Season 1.

Is Modern Warfare 4 DMZ free?

Not confirmed. Activision has not announced a free version, and reveal coverage says you will need Modern Warfare 4 to play it.

Do you lose XP if you die in DMZ?

No. Activision says XP counts whether or not you extract. You do risk the gear you carry in, and a lost Operator goes MIA until you pay to rescue them.

Can you play DMZ solo?

Yes. Activision says you can deploy solo or with a squad, and the Tourniquet and Stealth Meter were designed with solo players in mind. Maximum squad size has not been announced.

Is Modern Warfare 4 DMZ on Nintendo Switch 2?

Yes. Xbox Wire lists Modern Warfare 4 and DMZ for Nintendo Switch 2 on October 23, 2026. Activision has not announced any DMZ difference on Switch 2.

Sources and update history

• Call of Duty blog, Modern Warfare 4 DMZ Initial Intel, June 6, 2026 (setting, named areas, missions, threat system, FOB stations, progression, MIA, Tourniquet, PvP, platforms)
• Xbox Wire, DMZ: new intel on Call of Duty’s extraction shooter, June 7, 2026 (interview with Joe Cecot and Jacky Reynolds: 150 health, Boss Board per season, cash mule, underwater route; store listing: not on Game Pass this year)
• PlayStation Blog, Campaign, Multiplayer, and DMZ launches October 23, May 28, 2026
• Call of Duty blog, Modern Warfare 4 Multiplayer: Movement, Gunplay, Modes, & Maps, August 2026 (camo track across modes, Hajin in Warzone Season 1)
• Call of Duty blog, Modern Warfare 4 Open Beta: everything you need to know, August 2026 (beta content: Multiplayer, Campaign mission, Ground War: Combat Outpost, Warzone Resurgence; no DMZ)
• Call of Duty blog, Modern Warfare 4 pre-order benefits and game editions, May 2026 (DMZ Deployment Bonus, Vault Edition, at launch)
• Windows Central, Welcome to Hajin, June 6, 2026 (nine points of interest, MIA cost basis, not expected to be free)
• Gaming Trend, DMZ in Modern Warfare 4 preview, June 7, 2026 (points of interest, “Deadtown”)
• Call of Duty blog, DMZ Deep Dive, Part 2: FOB Intel Guide, October 9, 2026 (DMZ Early Access October 20, FOB station unlock levels, DMZ level 70, Trait Trees, Operator Prestige, MIA cost, Secure Slots, Vault Edition DMZ extras)
• Call of Duty blog, DMZ Deep Dive, Part 1: Hajin Intel Guide, October 5, 2026

Pre-launch overview; to be rewritten after DMZ goes live on October 23, 2026.

Update history: Published September 26, 2026. Updated October 10, 2026: added DMZ Early Access (October 20), FOB unlock levels, Trait Trees, Operator Prestige, MIA cost, Secure Slots and Vault Edition DMZ extras from Activision’s October DMZ Deep Dive posts. Facts last checked October 10, 2026 against the sources above.