The quick answer
Modern Warfare 4’s campaign has 16 missions. The table below gives the mission order, the central objective, a practical way to approach it, and the campaign reward shown by the published mission list. The mission names and short objectives are the backbone; use the specific collectible and achievement guides when you want 100% completion.
Mission order
| # | Mission | Central objective | Practical approach | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mayhem | A joint ROK and US Marine patrol moves through Hajin as tensions rise. | Keep cover between the squad and the rising threat; watch the air for paratrooper opportunities. | Cho Operator |
| 2 | Out in the Cold | Laswell activates an old asset in New York to hunt an emerging threat. | Clear rooms deliberately. The kitchen and Makarov encounters carry separate difficulty-specific trophy challenges. | No More Rules Calling Card |
| 3 | Following Orders | Special Forces hunt a defector as the North Korean regime changes. | Search the houses thoroughly, use the toolbox code 214, and keep civilians safe if you want the no-harm trophy. | Double XP Token |
| 4 | Hired Gun | Price helps Valeria smuggle a package in exchange for the Archer. | Use train cars for elevated angles and tally the 50 kills required by the Bullet Train trophy. | Dallas Operator |
| 5 | Losing Ground | The invasion sweeps through Hajin while allied forces try to hold the city. | Use the mortar sequence deliberately; the Raining Thunder trophy wants 15 kills with three rounds. | Ready Line Loading Screen |
| 6 | Traffic | A Paris meetup becomes a cartel warzone. | Fight from hard cover in the dense streets; avoid open crossings while the mission keeps changing direction. | Luca Operator |
| 7 | Gone Dark | Price and Valeria deliver the package in Mumbai. | Treat the night city as a close-range maze; clear the route before pushing the objective. | Gone Dark Emblem |
| 8 | Assassins | Attackers inside the regime try to overthrow the new leader. | For the Pacifist trophy, kill only one enemy and use the door codes 5523, 7632, and 9103. Replay on Hardened if you want Revenge instead. | Oh-Ji Operator |
| 9 | Survivors | Sierra-1 joins a cover raid into North Korea. | Stay with the squad and use the raid’s cover rather than sprinting ahead of the breach. | Double XP Token |
| 10 | Stranded | The surviving squad fights to stay alive behind enemy lines. | This is the sandbox mission: use fast travel after clearing outposts, repair Base Camp, and track notes with the backpack counter. | Kal Operator |
| 11 | Defection | Sierra-1 assaults the North Korean airbase with Lieutenant Ko. | Clear the approach methodically; the airbase has layered defenders and a large interior objective. | Double Weapon XP Token |
| 12 | Counter Attack | Allied forces launch a counterattack to retake Hajin. | Find the four mortar crews and snipe them for Long Shot before they disrupt the advance. | Dunn Operator |
| 13 | Escape | Price tries to break out of the Archer’s prison alone. | Stealth matters in the office section. Wait for the guard to leave, read the updated code, and open the safe with 8410 for the Dog Tags. | Double Weapon XP Token |
| 14 | Entrenched | US and ROK marines assault a North Korean power plant. | Use a shotgun for the 15-kill Trench Broom challenge before securing the target building. | West Operator |
| 15 | Decapitation | An off-the-books mission could end the war before the peninsula falls. | Keep the squad’s stealth and timing intact until the objective is exposed; do not start the final fight early. | Double XP Token |
| 16 | Greater Good | The Archer reaches the Russian border with Price and the weapon. | Treat the finale as a defensive gauntlet: preserve cover, ammunition, and a reliable mid-range weapon. | Park Operator |
Difficulty plan
MW4 has six campaign difficulties: Recruit, Regular, Hardened, Veteran, Realism, and YOLO. Realism is unlocked after completing the campaign on any difficulty. It removes much of the HUD and enables friendly fire. YOLO unlocks after Realism and is the one-life mode: dying resets the campaign to the beginning.
A sensible route is:
- First run on Regular or Veteran. Learn the missions and collect what you can. Veteran is useful preparation for Realism because the enemy behavior is similar, even though Realism reduces the interface.
- Replay targeted missions on Hardened or Veteran. Clear the kitchen on Hardened for Safety’s On, defeat Makarov without being hit for Can’t touch this, and use the dedicated Assassins replay for Revenge or Pacifist.
- Finish on Realism after unlocking it. Slow down, check corners, and avoid unnecessary fights because friendly fire and the reduced HUD make mistakes expensive.
Do not start with YOLO unless you already know every mission. It is a completion challenge, not a learning mode.
Campaign co-op and scope
The official game page and launch Campaign material describe a single-player story campaign; they do not list a separate campaign co-op mode. The mode explicitly described as solo-or-squad is DMZ. Do not treat the presence of squadmates in story missions as proof of drop-in campaign co-op, and do not buy the game for campaign co-op without a current official confirmation.
Practical campaign tips
- Use the mission-select menu for cleanup. The trophy guide records no missable trophies, but replaying is still safer than trying to remember a missed note or branch.
- In Following Orders, do not let the hidden civilian stay in the crawlspace if you want the final note. Talk her out before finishing the house.
- In Stranded, clear outposts to create fast-travel points, then run collection routes from those points. The backpack shows the note counter during this mission.
- Do not spend all your ammunition on optional fights in Escape; the safe and Dog Tags are the important collectible branch.