3 Must-Have Additions to MLB The Show '25
MLB The Show 24 has been out for over a month now, and we have talked about some of the biggest improvements. RTTS is better, Franchise Mode is better, but while there were improvements, more could be done to enhance the game’s longevity. No matter what you’re game mode of choice is, the game needs some more juice. What helps other sports games like Madden and NBA 2K thrive is they have many different ways to play which makes it more fun to play and stream.
So, I tried to come up with some ideas that would make the game more fun to play for a longer period of time. Here are my three must-have additions for MLB The Show 25.
Many people know this idea was inspired by NBA 2K. Beginning on last year’s NBA 2K release, they changed their franchise mode to a NBA Eras. In this game mode, you can choose a decode of your choosing from 1980’s, 1990’s, 2000’s, and modern era. In this game mode, you begin a franchise from that year and it gives an authentic feel to it. Old rules, old uniforms, announcers, graphics, etc. While it is exciting to travel back to the Showtime Era in the NBA, or the Bulls’ dominant years in the 90’s, imagine going back to Babe Ruth days in MLB? Hank Aaron? Pete Rose, etc.
Obviously, this could change the landscape of MLB history. Maybe Bonds doesn’t become the home run king. Maybe Rose doesn’t become or remain the all-time hit king. Either way, going back and enjoying different eras of MLB history would surely be a breath of fresh air to franchise mode. If you’re unfamiliar with NBA Eras, here are a couple of screenshots to give you a good idea of what it would be like in MLB The Show.
Somewhat adopting from NBA 2K again, they have the United States Olympic basketball team on the game. Since the World Baseball Classic is becoming such a big deal, it would be cool to have a World Baseball Classic Game Mode of some sorts. When I watch streamers, oftentimes there are people playing with Team Dominican Republic uniforms, or Mexico, etc. That is because the Diamond Dynasty is the only way they can play with those uniforms or teams.
Just last year, the 2023 World Baseball Classic broke an attendance record for the First-Round, drawing 1,010,999, the most attended round in the history of the tournament and a +98% increase vs. the previous record of 510,056 in 2017, according to MLB.com. This shows the interest is strong and imagine a WBC Game Mode, or even being able to play in the WBC in Road To The Show with your player.
Being able to walk around with your RTTS character, interact with other RTTS players like you can in NBA 2K would be the biggest upgrade. I understand, this may be a lot of work, but this is the main thing MLB The Show is missing if they want to take the next step. Play some pick-up baseball with other RTTS players and be able to interact and walk around, go to stores and purchase equipment, etc. Being able to go to Under Armour, Mizuno, Franklin stores or Fanatics to purchase jerseys for your player would make it a lot more fun as well.
Road To The Show needs the most improvement to make it more exciting in the long term. After a couple weeks, I have already been called up to the Angels and admittedly, the game mode has been less exciting. More interviews, abilities to spend money for your RTTS player would instantly raise sales for this game significantly.
Overall, MLB The Show is getting better, the gameplay has improved, the PPI has more things much easier, but for the next game, I’d like to focus more on the Game Modes. It was clear they wanted to change the gameplay on this year’s release, but for next year’s release, I am hoping for some substantial improvement to the Game Modes.
What do you think of my additions? What changes would you like to see for MLB The Show?
Dedrick Hendrix is a Featured Columnist for Perfect Perfect: An MLB the Show Substack. He also writes for Fansided and Just Baseball. You can follow him on X @dchendrix, Twitch @itsdchendrix, and Instagram @officialdchendrix.
That headline comes from a comment that I heard OhChev make on one of his streams. Yeah, foul balls are bad on MLB the Show. This player’s opponent had 61 in just one game. For reference, there are about 54 foul balls in an average MLB game but that counts both teams.
I’m not sure this would be possible in real life, no matter how far Stanton hit the ball.
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