Is Call of Duty: Warzone really free? The honest receipt

Warzone's PS4 and Xbox One cut-off this week

The biggest Warzone news for UK players right now is a platform change. Activision's support page says Warzone moves onto Modern Warfare 4 foundations, supported on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, and that Warzone becomes unplayable on PS4 and Xbox One when Season 1 launches.

Activision's Season 1 announcement gives that date as midnight Eastern on 6 November 2026, which is 5am UK time on 6 November. Downloads on the older consoles already stopped in June, and the in-game store was removed from them on 25 June 2026. Activision says progression and items bought with COD Points carry over to a supported platform through a linked Activision account.

What the free Warzone client includes

The Xbox Store describes Warzone as a free-to-play combat arena, and the core is all there for £0: Battle Royale, Resurgence and limited-time modes. Activision's Season 1 notes add new maps Hajin and Zodiac plus the return of Verdansk and Rebirth Island as Modern Warfare 4 is integrated with the free game.

Warzone is rated PEGI 18 in the PEGI database and on the UK Xbox Store, for graphic violence and strong language, with in-game purchases. Unlike several games on this list, it is not a teen-friendly free shooter, and the rating is the first thing to check before the cost question even matters.

The UK Xbox Store lists cross-platform multiplayer, and Activision says progression and COD Points purchases carry over between supported platforms through a linked Activision account. Because Warzone shares a launcher and menus with the paid Modern Warfare 4, the download can feel bigger and busier than a standalone free game, but you don't need to own MW4 to play Warzone's modes.

COD Points, the Battle Pass and BlackCell

Purchases run through COD Points. For Season 1, Activision lists the Battle Pass at 1,100 COD Points and the Battle Pass Bundle at 2,400 COD Points. The pass is a linear 100-tier track mixing free and premium tiers, with Operator skins, weapon Blueprints, finishing moves, calling cards and more.

New this season is a catch-up system: if you buy the premium pass and fall behind, you are automatically caught up to the reward matching the current day of the season, up to day 50, guaranteeing 50+ rewards. Above that sits BlackCell, a paid tier with exclusive Operator skins and Blueprints, which is also included with the Modern Warfare 4 Vault Edition.

PlayStation's UK page also points players to buy COD Points and add-on packs on the PlayStation Store.

Is Warzone pay-to-win or just pay-to-look?

The headline good news: Activision says the Season 1 pass includes two new base weapons that are free, the Cronen Osprey assault rifle and the CSG-35 SMG, sitting on Battle Pass tiers. Everyone can earn the guns that define the new season.

Where it gets greyer is everything around those guns. Weapon Blueprints are variants sold in bundles, the premium pass and BlackCell, and the premium pass adds a 10% Battle Pass XP boost. Our editorial view is that this buys speed and style rather than raw power, since the base weapons are free, but it's less clear-cut than a purely cosmetic shop, so we've scored it a 2 rather than a 1.

How much time the free Warzone route asks for

Warzone rewards long sessions. A 100-tier pass, weapon levels, attachments, camo challenges and seasonal events all stack up, and matches themselves can run long if you survive to the final circle. Free players earn the free pass tiers and the new base weapons by playing; there's no hard wall, just a lot of numbers to fill.

Paying for the premium pass speeds things up with a 10% Battle Pass XP boost for the season, according to Activision, which tells you plenty about where the designers expect impatience to land.

The new catch-up system is only for premium pass owners, so free players who start late in a season simply have fewer weeks to earn free tiers. Since the base weapons arrive on pass tiers rather than the shop, our advice for free players is to focus on the pass early in a season if those weapons matter to you.

Shop design around Warzone menus

Warzone shares its menus with the paid Call of Duty games, so free players see storefront tiles for bundles, the Battle Pass, BlackCell and the full Modern Warfare 4 purchase. That makes the shop pressure among the heaviest on this list, even before limited-time events and charity packs appear.

The upside is that prices are shown in COD Points before you commit, and nothing interrupts a match. For a household, the simplest guardrail is turning off stored payment methods on the console account.

Warzone and families: the PEGI 18 conversation

Warzone is often talked about alongside Fortnite as "the other free battle royale", but the two sit at very different points on the age scale. PEGI rates Warzone 18 for graphic violence towards human-like characters and strong language. Being free doesn't change that, and the consoles' parental controls can block it based on the rating.

For adults, the cost picture is the main question. For anyone under 18, the rating is the answer before cost even comes up. We've included Warzone here because it's one of the most-searched free games in the UK, not as a recommendation for younger players.

If an adult in the house plays, it's worth making sure the console's child accounts have their own age restrictions and spending limits, since Warzone shares menus with full-price Call of Duty games and their storefronts.

Online play on PS5 and Xbox without a subscription

• PS5: Sony's PS Plus FAQ names Call of Duty Warzone as a free-to-play game that does not require a membership.
• Xbox Series X|S: Microsoft lists Warzone among its free-to-play games and says all Xbox players can access online multiplayer in free-to-play games at no charge.
• Switch: not available.
• PC: no subscription involved.

Sony advertises exclusive PS Plus items for Warzone, but those are cosmetic bonuses, not a requirement.