I’m really happy for the SMS protect thing. I hope that means that us Linux (Lutris/proton) players can continue to enjoy Overwatch 2 without anticheat blocking us.
" don’t know why ppl hate it"
because i have 2 kids and i play too. So now in order for us to all play together - on the separate accounts we already have - they are demanding i buy and keep 3 active cell phones. meaning i would have to pay the extra line fee for EACH extra phone line on top of the basic account fee on top of the cost of two more phones. to play a game we used to love playing together but now will not.
12 Likes
Or they could just use the fact that I have a card that I paid for things with. Or the fact that I have OW1 which is the best guarantee ever since I can’t buy another one. Or the fact that I have 1000 hours in. Or the level 5 reputation they built into the game. Or an app. Or they could just let me buy a token.
This isn’t about that. I’m not sure why they need the juicy phone data, but everyone and I mean everyone wants it. I think this is the one ID that unites them all, and when I say something bad on Twitter they can punish me for being a bad boy. And with no purchases, there’s no refunds or lawsuits.
Finally, online bullying in the hands of people who will use it responsibly: rich out of touch people from another continent.
5 Likes
When the game cost 40 dollars, it was full of smurfs and hackers but now that a 5 dollar phone number is introduced, it’s all going away.
2 Likes
Because Blizzard was literally just in hot water about a massive sexual abuse scandal, they only accept postpaid phones, they automatically deny certain service companies entirely, they are recording ALL of voice chat, and do not delete said transcripts for a month. IE, this isn’t implemented well at all, and is a massive data breach just waiting to happen.
4 Likes
I am honestly shocked, and mostly disappointed, to see that you’re locking acct verification behind SPECIFICALLY post-paid phone numbers.
I’d HAPPILY face off against the occasional rich c*nt w/ a box full of prepaids to enable all of the people who cant afford post-paid to play the game. Or those kids whose family is on pre-paid and have no say.
This is some of the most CLASSIST BS I’ve ever seen. It’s bad enough half the future content is locked behind a paid battle pass.
Just a reminder for those who don’t realize it:
Mint, Boost Mobile, Visible, Cricket, almost every MVNO (company who buys rights to service from one of the big 3), is a prepaid customer. I’m incredibly lucky that google fi is basically the only post-paid mvno.
Blizzard needs to rethink this ASAP. Or fear the wrath of Ryan Reynolds.
14 Likes
Also, @BlizzardEntertainment, the link to “Account Merge FAQ” just goes to the news page. pls fix
I tried, none of my purchases are eligible for refunds.
Edit: That being said, Store says I don’t have watchpoint even though I have it in my transaction history.
1 Like
Contact Blizzard support manually. People definitely have been getting refunds, but I’m not sure whether they did it through the store or a more manual process.
1 Like
I can’t find anyone who got a refund recently. Everyone who did (that I can find) refunded it before the phone requirement. It was after the paywalled heroes debacle.
Either that or search function is not responding well to the “refund” keyword.
ETA: I initiated a ticket manually.
2 Likes
1300 hours played on Overwatch 1 and zero to be played on Overwatch 2 due to this stupid SMS BS. I don’t have a mobile and don’t need one. I work from home on a PC with a land line right next to me. I have absolutely zero need for a mobile and this nonsense won’t change my mind. Get a grip Blizzard.
16 Likes
please fix the SMS phone verification and support more phone providers. I have a phone number, but I use cricket as a provider so I can’t play OW2, and I can’t use a family members number because we’re all under the same provider (cricket wireless) I’ve been so hyped the past few weeks for OW2 and now I’m just fearful I won’t be able to play. This is just too much. I much rather lose to a Smurf or two rather than not play at all. People are already finding ways to bypass the SMS rules anyways, whether to smurf or simply play.
Hoping there is a solution before or soon after launch, because if there isn’t you’re gonna lose ALOT of players.
7 Likes
I’ve been playing overwatch for 6 years straight, and now I’m not allowed to play because of my carrier
11 Likes
Fix your SMS phone verification and support more providers!
7 Likes
So now Blizzard is deciding to Discriminate against literally millions of players without contract cell phone plans by prohibiting them from playing the game?! In America alone, Cricket has over 12 million users, most of whom are in the younger, gamer demographic. Over 1/4 of Americans use a prepaid phone plan. This policy is doing much more harm than good, for both the players and Blizzard’s reputation. At a minimum, you need to have a backup method of verification for those with prepaid phone numbers, or parents with children. Please fix and respond to this crisis ASAP
10 Likes
Let’s not forget they are literally discriminating against children and lower class individuals with their Postpaid SMS verification requirements.
6 Likes
How to kill your already diminishing player base before the “sequel” launches 101: Presented by Activision-Blizzard.
“Don’t you guys have phones?!” still going strong!
News flash: Not everybody can afford expensive cell phone plans, especially the way the economy currently is. Other then streaming services, cell phones are probably right up there with extra bills that aren’t needed for day to day life, for people living paycheck to paycheck. I know lots of people that have got rid of cell phones to save money in hard times, or have pre-paid plans because they are much cheaper.
Also I’m willing to bet a large population of people that play this game, are younger children that aren’t even old enough to work, to be able to buy a cell phone…
9 Likes
I have a Pre -paid phone is it different for New Zealand cause my account got verified when I added my number to my account?
Can I have a refund on my Perm ban account that I started 6yrs ago ty
It’s not even just this. I “could” afford a more expensive phone plan. But why would I when I don’t need it? So I went from Verizon to Ting to save money. Then when I moved to an area that had poor reception on the T-Mobile network they used I moved to Cricket on the AT&T network.
And since I’ve done that, if I read the support feedback right, my phone number I’ve had for almost 2 decades now is permanently blacklisted from this for being on Cricket. So even if I decided to change to AT&T proper and spend more money just to play OW2 it wouldn’t work.
And it’s not like this is something we could foresee. I have never had this problem for any other service. I can use this phone plan to verify my ID for every other thing I do. From Uber to banking.
4 Likes
I have been playing Overwatch for 6 years and have purchased almost all the skins, but the SMS verification prevents me from playing Overwatch 2.
I have also purchased the watchpoint pack and am considering legal action if I cannot play from day one.
4 Likes