Update 10/14/2022: Activision has clarified that the controversial Overwatch 2 phone policy that was also thought to be in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will only affect some PC players.
As reported by PC Gamer, an anti-cheat blog post on Call of Duty's website made clear that only those on PC will need to register a phone number before playing Modern Warfare 2. Existing Call of Duty: Warzone players who've previously verified their accounts will not need to provide any further details, however.
"The SMS policy for Modern Warfare II and Warzone 2.0 on Battle.net is the same as the requirement for Call of Duty: Warzone on PC, which was implemented in May 2020. A mobile phone number must be linked to your Steam Account to play Modern Warfare II on that platform," the post said.
Original Story: The controversial Overwatch 2 feature that required players to connect a phone number to their account before playing is also coming to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
As reported by PC Gamer, the requirement will seemingly be applicable to all Modern Warfare 2 players instead of just the minority of those playing Overwatch. "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, newly created Overwatch 2 accounts, and newly created Call of Duty: Modern Warfare accounts require a phone number," a Blizzard support page reads.
It's unclear if Activision will backtrack the phone number requirement just as Blizzard did for Overwatch 2, reducing it so that only new players had to add a number, but the Modern Warfare 2 phrasing wasn't changed alongside Overwatch 2's on the support page.
A phone number is required by Blizzard for account security, as notifications will be delivered after suspicious login attempts, password changes, and security features change. It
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