Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2 will reportedly require players to register a post-paid cell number in order to play the game online. This action is allegedly being done to improve security; Blizzard did a similar thing with Overwatch 2 before quickly deleting it in response to the player backlash.
According to an updated post of Blizzard Support on the Battle.net forums, the prerequisites are as follows: “A phone number is required for newly formed Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, Overwatch 2, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare accounts.” According to Actiblizz, requiring players to register their phone numbers in order to limit the number of free accounts they may have “helps hold players accountable for their activities and, as a result, minimises toxicity and cheating.”
The hits keep coming under the eligibility and limitations category, with one saying, “Mobile phones with prepaid plans may not work with the phone notification service.” While owning a mobile phone may not appear to be a significant barrier to access in modern life, the site notes that prepaid mobile numbers may not function. It means players who have pay-as-you-go contract on their mobile phones, may not be able to play the game.
I fancy playing the campaign of the new Modern Warfare 2 but am hearing rumblings that it has the same phone number verification system that Overwatch 2 has. If that's the case then hopefully it's for MP only. No way am I doing that to play the single player.
— Chris Brownsell (@ChrisBrownsell) October 12, 2022
If you were expecting to play on Steam without having to deal with any of these criteria, think twice. The steam store page of Modern Warfare 2 mentions that you must link a phone number to your Steam account before playing the game.
Blizzard has disabled the same service with Overwatch 2 after receiving several complaints from users who failed to link their mobile phones to Battle.net accounts. This move came after just days after the launch of Overwatch 2. It remains to be seen how long this requirement will last for MW2. Anyone with an existing, linked Battle.net account should not need to register their phone number to play, but new players will have to link their devices.
It is still unknown if registering a mobile phone number is required to play Modern Warfare 2 on PlayStation or Xbox platforms. Overwatch 2 does need users to register a cell phone number across all platforms, including PlayStation 4, 5, and Xbox consoles. However, the PlayStation or Xbox store pages of the game have not mentioned any such mobile phone linking system in order to play the game.
Seeing as though Activision Blizzard is making the same mistakes with Overwatch 2 as they are with Modern Warfare 2? I think I’m considering saving the money I’d normally put towards that game and just buying God Of War Ragnarok instead?
— Josh Bieker (@BiekerJosh) October 12, 2022
It’s likely that we’ll have to wait till MW2’s release date to learn more, as Blizzard only confirmed that Overwatch players would require a mobile number two days before the game’s debut.
It’s likely that we’ll have to wait till MW2’s release date to learn more, as Blizzard only confirmed that Overwatch players would require a mobile number two days before the game’s debut.
Modern Warfare 2 will be released later this month i.e., on 28 October with early access to the campaign kicking off on 20 October for those who have pre-ordered the digital edition of the game.
