Call of Duty will also require a phone number to play

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will use Activision Blizzard’s controversial SMS Protect system, requiring a non-pre-paid phone number to play.

Following the controversial decision from Activision Blizzard to require players to register a phone number to play Overwatch 2, the company has decided to implement the same policy with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

The Overwatch 2 system, SMS Protect, was implemented to prevent “smurfing” — the act of creating a new account (as a seasoned veteran) to stomp on newer players in multiplayer games.

While a good idea in theory, the SMS Protect system began locking many long-time Overwatch players from their accounts.

SMS Protect requires a phone number that isn’t tethered to a prepaid card. This requirement automatically excludes a large number of players from content they paid for, simply because they couldn’t afford a more expensive cellular plan.

The backlash was swift, with Blizzard eventually reversing the “poor-shaming” restriction — but only for old accounts. New Overwatch 2 players will have to meet the requirement to play.

If you use a prepaid plan or a SIM-only plan, you might be ineligible to play Call of Duty. Picture: Activision Blizzard

It appears that this same system is making an appearance in Modern Warfare 2, according to the website.

“Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, newly created Overwatch 2 accounts, and newly created Call of Duty: Modern Warfare accounts require a phone number. Mobile phones with prepaid plans may not work with the phone notification service.”

Unlike with Overwatch, since Modern Warfare 2 is a new game, it appears likely that all players who wish to play will be required to register a phone number — so if you have a prepaid plan or a SIM-only plan, you may need to consider upgrading your plan (or play another game.)

Modern Warfare 2 launches on October 28 on all platforms.

Activision Blizzard has had a rough few weeks recently — Overwatch 2 hasn’t had the smoothest of launches, with a series of game-breaking bugs and cyberattacks marring things. A report from the NLRB stated how Activision Blizzard withheld raises from union activists, and the company’s CCO (who is a torture apologist and an architect of the US’s ‘war on terror’ policy) recently resigned from her position.

— written by Junior Miyai on behalf of GLHF