The controversial phone number requirement for Overwatch 2 garnered enough backlash that Blizzard slightly retracted the plans for returning players. The divisive requirement is also in the upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 reboot.

In their recently update game page, the developer states that a phone number will be required for all players looking to play the game.

The phone requirement is listed differently from Overwatch 2 and even the previous Modern Warfare title, as those have the condition only for newly created accounts for both games.

This new policy goes in standing with their backtracking of the decision for Overwatch 2, and with how Modern Warfare 2 is a new game yet to be released, it makes sense all accounts would be new and thus have the requirement.

When Overwatch 2 launched, its phone number requirements were met with wide disapproval. A big gripe users had was that it did not allow those with prepaid phone plans to be able to use their number, and therefore meant they were unable to play the game.

It appears this issue will continue on when Modern Warfare 2 launches at the end of this month. As the company state: “Any mobile phone in a supported country with a data plan, and that is not prepaid or a VOIP number, can be used with this service.”

The Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 reboot is set to release on October 28th, 2022 across Windows PC (via Battle.net and Steam), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.