A new report suggests that the next Call of Duty title—widely expected to be Modern Warfare 4—may not be available on Xbox Game Pass at launch, despite recent entries in the series appearing on the service from day one.

According to industry insider Jez Corden, Microsoft is reportedly reconsidering its current strategy with Call of Duty on Game Pass. Speaking on the Xbox Two podcast, he indicated that including such a massive franchise in the subscription service might be causing unintended problems for both Xbox and the game itself.

One issue is financial. Call of Duty is one of the best-selling franchises every year, and making it available through a subscription could reduce direct sales. Some reports claim that putting the series on Game Pass has already led to significant revenue losses, potentially reaching hundreds of millions of dollars.

At the same time, the presence of such a huge title may also impact the value structure of Game Pass. Including blockbuster releases increases costs for Microsoft, which could be one reason subscription prices have risen. There are concerns that the model may not be sustainable if every major title launches this way.

Because of this, Microsoft is said to be exploring alternative approaches. One possibility is removing Call of Duty from day-one Game Pass releases altogether. Another idea being discussed is introducing a more expensive subscription tier specifically for premium titles like Call of Duty, while keeping the standard tier cheaper.

It’s important to note that none of this has been officially confirmed. The information comes from insider reports and should be treated as speculation for now. However, multiple sources suggest that skipping a day-one Game Pass launch for the 2026 Call of Duty is at least being considered.

If this change does happen, it would mark a major shift in Xbox’s strategy. Game Pass has long promoted day-one access to first-party titles as a key selling point, and removing one of the biggest franchises in gaming from that lineup would be a significant departure from that approach.

For now, fans will have to wait for an official announcement to know whether Modern Warfare 4 will follow recent entries onto Game Pass—or break away from that model.