Overwatch 2's Phone Requirement: 'It's Like Being Punished For Being Poor'

Blizzard's FPS should be free-to-play, but it keeps propping up barriers to entry.

[Jin_Sakai]

It’s just Overwatch with a fresh coat of paint. You’re not missing out by not playing it.

[Christopher]

Oh, you hear that everyone, if you liked Overwatch and want to continue playing it with Overwatch 2 since Overwatch was shuttered, you don't need to. He's deemed it not worth playing. So, update your taste profiles and move on to something else. Please stay tuned for future Jin_Sakai-approved game updates.

On topic: This is a new version of what we've evolved into with large patch updates and people who have data caps in their region (even some places in the U.S.). Companies only care about the ones with money, not actually about reaching everyone. Capitalism at its finest. Have money and move to a better area or get left behind.

[H9]

He's just saying his opinion, there's no need to act like he is holding a gun over people's heads

[Jin_Sakai]

@Christopher

If they’re gonna slap a 2 on it then it should be an entirely new game.

[FPS_D3TH]

It’s almost as if you’re allowed to post your opinions here… almost

[Brazz]

A bit of an over reaction... Calm down.

[Christopher]

***If they’re gonna slap a 2 on it then it should be an entirely new game. ***

I don't disagree with this, but your original comment didn't say this and instead inferred if they played Overwatch they don't need to play the 2nd. Fact is, if they want to play Overwatch, they have to play the 2nd now.

I find it humorous that someone telling everyone to skip a game isn't an overreacting opinion but someone calling out such statements is. Interesting.

Almost like we're all just sharing opinions and all opinions can be judged for how they're presented, including my own. People just decide to label based on which side of the argument they support.

[Michiel1989]

@chris large patch updates? they basically stopped patching the game a looooong time ago. There was no need for an Overwatch 2 at all actually if they just kept updating the game on a regular basis. Maybe make the characters 5 euros each or smthn since it was not sustainable to keep producing content and no1 buying the cosmetic boxes. They were also too generous with people that played enough pretty much being able to get all skins besides a select few that were only purchasable with money. That is the reason they rebranded OW, not cause its a completely new game.

[Christopher]

*** large patch updates? they basically stopped patching the game a looooong time ago. There was no need for an Overwatch 2 at all actually if they just kept updating the game on a regular basis.***

I don't disagree with this at all. I only have sympathy for those who liked Overwatch 1 and now only have Overwatch 2 to play. In the end, Blizzard did their fanbase wrong, but it's still a fanbase that likely wants to play the game they like.

[Tapani]

I dunno, we live in the mountains in a town of 20K people in Nagano, Japan, and we have fiber optic 1GB internet which costs us 20 bucks a month. US is a different geoscape, but it's still possible to have a solid internet connection and a good job if you put your mind into it. So do less commenting on forums and more focusing on getting that Overwatch 2 working wherever you are living!

[Christopher]

***US is a different geoscape, but it's still possible to have a solid internet connection and a good job if you put your mind into it.***

Not if Comcast has anything to say about it.

[Mobis-New-Nest]

I played 20 minutes of Overwatch 1 and got bored already and stopped, nothing to keep me hocked, Team Fortress 2 is much older and light-years better than Overwatch 1 and 2 in terms of gameplay mechanics, characters and just overall fun.

[BlackTar187]

20 mins. That just means you hate actually being part of a team unit and you sucked and never even fulfilled your role. Just kidding about the to suck part.

[343_Guilty_Spark]

No it isn't

[blackblades]

I'm 100% opposite, spent 1k+ hours and my nephew amongst others. I have a OW hat and every time I go out for the past multiple years I always get "oh nice hat" or "who you main". 20mins isnt enough and 100% likely wasnt competitive or played with good players

[franwex]

Cannot play Overwatch 1-even if you paid for it because it ended. Cannot play overwatch 2 due to having a prepaid phone. Wow.

I make a very decent salary and have a pre paid phone. I know people that are millionaires and have prepaid phones. I also know broke people with phone contracts.

This is dumb. I seriously rather pay $70 to play the game than getting a phone plan to play a free to play game. I rather pay $70 than to give a game company my phone number.

[r2oB]

Why not play a different game? Seems like they don't want you to play their game. You should oblige them.

[BLAKHOODe]

I prepay. $70/month for mine and my kid's phone through AT&T, which would cost me about $120/month with a contract. We've been prepay for years. No issues using it with Overwatch.

[Sephiroushin]

Idk but I havent been in a contract for more than 8 years now, i have the same plan i used to and pay the same, i just buy unlocked phone and put the chip, has no problem either...

[Michiel1989]

i have prepaid phone and i can play it just fine. I thought only thing was that the number cant be on more than 1 account unless im missing something?

[franwex]

They seem to have updated if you had a blizzard account since June. It looks like the backlash worked.

[Michiel1989]

Read a bit more into it an indeed for some countries u had to have a phone contract (by a major provider). Glad they went back on that decision but its still stupid to being with. Preventing cheaters is a thing ofc, but making ur game not easily hackable is also a thing.

I dont even enjoy playing it atm cause i need to wait in que for an hour or so, then play 3 games and get kicked out and im back in que. Terrible launch but what else did i expect from blizzard at this point. As long as people buy their product/mtx they will just botch a game cause money. Its pathetic at this point for a multi billion company. Is it really that hard to get extra servers up for the launch of the game? The moment where you need to grasp your playerbase by the balls so they keep playing.

[Owlbert]

It's to make ppl think twice about cheating...if you're number gets banned because your wall hacking and aimboting then are you going to take out a contract every time you get banned.ps I'm also on a pre paid phone. Rainbow six siege are on about implementing it in ranked.

[senorfartcushion]

Shows you how far companies can go if you have annoyed them. It’s not a nice precedent for them to set

[BlackDoomAx]

Oh, it's for banning people cheating? Let's see if it pays off.

[PapaBop]

I think it's more to address the huge smurf problem of the original.

[HeliosHex]

Personally I think this is over stepping. We already give up much of our privacy. Giving a game company your phone information just to play their game has zero relevance. They claim its to stop cheaters but I don't see how having your number would prevent that. To make matters worse it has to be a major provider. Why? A number is a number. What's next your cable bill? Your lease? Drivers license? Where does it end? It's wrong, it's a breach of privacy and has no place in playing a game. We already register our email and give Microsoft and Sony sensitive info to play on their platform. I'll be damned if I'll be giving that same privilege to a software company too. Honestly blizzard can go F themselves. I won't lose sleep over not playing overwatch 2.

[ravinash]

2FA is becoming the standard for secuity on any IT system if you work with company data. More and more companies will require you to have a mobile either as an app or number to call to get you the 2nd authenication. Its just a fact of the world we live in today.
Unfortunatly I can see why they would block pay as you go, as they are cheap and anyone getting round the ban could just create a new account that way.
It's not like we're talking about a system that life or death to need access to - No one is making you play the game. If you don't agree then your welcome to go play something else.
If you can think of a better system of stopping people creating new accounts every time their banned, Id love to hear it.

[r2oB]

Perhaps do an account, IP, and HWID ban (multiple). Make it harder, expensive for the cheaters, not regular people trying to play your game. What do you think is easier to circumvent, getting a new mobile number via spoofing or buying/spoofing multiple hardware devices.

[HeliosHex]

@ravinaah. All ip is traceable even VPN. Once you block the ip in question that person can make all the accounts they want it won't get through a blocked ip. That should be more than adequate.

Getting a phone number from a family plan is not going to help and it won't stop the banned number from being changed to a new one. Furthermore yes many companies request a second back up email or phone number for authentication but that's fine those companies are important and generally have your sensitive info. That doesn't mean everyone especially a game company is entitled to the same thing.

It's just a game it's not that serious. So your right no one is making me play it and frankly it's no bother to me in the slightest. Don't take my opinion on the matter as a gesture of how important it is that i play this kids game because its not. choices are great isn't it? Especially when they say play something else, or this movie is not for you only to find out there's only so many fans you can turn away before your endeavor becomes a flop.

Work on your servers and enhance the tools available to ban cheaters it's that simple. Tell blizzard I said try harder.

[Profchaos]

Yes you're right mfa is becoming a mainstay for cyber security however the way blizzard has implanted it here is poor practice and it's well documented that SMS is considerably weak and the worst form of mfa available if blizzard built or leveraged a otp code using a industry standard things would have been fine.

[ClosetRebel]

So far, I've been able to get into a game once since go live. All other times I've tried to log in I've been met with a long queue. I can't even get in to play a game I originally paid for. I'm thoroughly disappointed.

[staticall]

I don't think cheaters or smurf problems have anything to do with this. They're probably trying to collect personal data for new players. And some people are happy to provide it, seems like.

Overwatch 1 was a paid game and it had smurfs and cheaters aplenty. Why didn't $20-$60 have solved this but phone contract (which also costs around $20-$30 a month in US and probably even less in other countries) will? The fact that the game is paid didn't stop anyone, remember.
Not to mention, people might start selling phone numbers to register/use at Overwatch, Battle.net accounts, you name it. This will raise more problems that it claims to solve, in my opinion.

P. S.: Looks like they're removing the phone requirement for (most of) existing Overwatch players https://us.forums.blizzard....

[roadkillers]

I’m going to get slammed for this… and downvotes to the high heavens…. But should someone really be gaming if they are “poor”? Not saying you can’t play occasionally, but this is one of the worst hobbies for being “poor”.

You need to purchase a console, then purchase a game, then there is a huge time sink, along with companies trying to pinch every penny out of you with DLC and microtrans, without any tangible reward after…

[staticall]

While i understand your point (and somewhat agree, buying an expensive piece of equipment to run new demanding games is not the best investment you can make; but saying poor outright shouldn't play sounds like some pointless elitism, IMO), though, you can play old games without any issues even on super old PCs. Or emulate older consoles.

Regarding whatever they should be playing or not in general - it depends on a person, i think. Gaming usually helps me to relax, clear my mind, de-escalate and such. It's a hobby, after all, it should help you relax. But if you're trying to replace your job with it (aka, spending 8+ hours a day everyday) and you don't have enough money, you're doing something wrong, i think. And i do agree, that most of the newer games are worse, trying to fish out as much money from you as possible. But again, older games i think is the answer in such situation.

[franwex]

The article has a poor player slant. The thing is, even if you’re not poor-you can still have a prepaid phone. As stated above-I rather pay for the game than to provide my private number.

[DarthZoolu]

These players feel like they are being punished but they should look on the bright side. They won’t have to worry about playing that trash

[FPS_D3TH]

Honestly I don’t see this game surviving once The Finals comes out after that insanely fun play test either way

[Gexillion]

It’s to cut down on cheating. If there wasn’t so many cheaters out there this wouldn’t have been a thing. I’m all for cutting down on cheating even if that means a few players cannot play the game.

[Bobertt]

Lol well the DIablo Devs did say Don't you all have phones years ago.

[Petebloodyonion]

1) You don't need a phone if you have logged in to your Battlenet account after June 2022 (only new accounts need phone verification)
2) PPL needs to understand that with free-to-play Cheaters and smurfs just need to create another account so asking for a legit phone number is to prevent that problem.

[Dirtnapstor]

You have a PC or console. You have internet access. You'll have a phone, or access to one.
Punishing the poor... yah, I don't think so. Government rewards those who fall into a lower economic category. They'll have a phone.

[XxINFERNUSxX]

Just don't play OW2, seems everyone that is wants to support the shit bag company Blizzard. Guys let it go, it's not the same company as it once was.

[Inverno]

I'm confused… how did you afford the console or the expensive PC to play the game in the first place? I can get being upset at them excluding prepaid, which is perfectly fine as companies are greedy bastards, but if I were poor I'd have far bigger problems than not being able to play this. I would also think twice about spending $500 on a gaming console.

[gold_drake]

well, another reason not to play it.

so stupid honestly

[anast]

Blizzard is as slimy as it gets.