Sony San Diago’sMLB The Show 21has attracted a lot of attention in recent weeks after it was announcedMLB would publish the former PlayStation exclusive franchise on Xbox,and on top of that, be included in Xbox’s Game Pass. While the game being on both Xbox and PlayStation may be unfortunate for Sony, it is great news for gamers and baseball fans, that is, if the game is worth playing.
MLB The Show 21will be looking to make an impact on Xbox while pleasing long-time PlayStation fans as the new game continues to build on the solid formula that has worked well for the franchise, as well as moving the series on to a new console generation. With more eyes on the game than ever before, many gamers are looking to discover whether or not to pick up the newest entry in the serious.
RELATED:Head of Xbox Phil Spencer Congratulates Sony on MLB The Show 21 Launch
Players willing to pay a little more for thedeluxe edition gain early access to the gamehave already had a chance to try the game, and now the reviews are rolling in from outlets giving fans all the information they need. So, isMLB The Show 21another great entry in the series and a perfect welcome to both Xbox players and the next generation, or does it leave a bad first impression for the franchise?
IGN(Gabriel Moss)
“MLB The Show 21 does a great job of opening its pristine baseball simulator to a brand-new group of players as it arrives on Xbox for the first time. Much like MLB The Show 20 before it, it still plays a bit too safe in most instances, only offering marginal gains over its predecessor with things like menu organization and improved customization. Nearly everything is visually nearly identical. Meanwhile, it kneecaps one of the series’ key continuity features by cutting off save transfers from previous games. That’s a puzzling decision, but it’s hard to believe it’d be a deal-breaker for long-time fans in the face of additions like the flexible new Stadium Creator, cross-platform multiplayer, and awesome DualSense support. MLB The Show 21 might not be an all-star but it’s still far and away the best baseball game you can pick up and play on any platform.”
Score 8/10
Gamespot(Richard Wakeling)
“Much like its predecessors, MLB The Show 21 is still one of the best sports games available once you step over the foul line. The gameplay has been tightened up and Pinpoint Pitching is a potential game-changer, and all of these elements go some way to dampening the disappointment of its missing features, stale commentary, and changes (or lack thereof) to Road to the Show and Franchise. It’s not the strongest debut the series could’ve had on new hardware, but if you’re in the mood for nine innings of America’s favorite pastime, MLB The Show is still the undisputed king.”
Score 7/10
Forbes(Brian Mazique)
“MLB The Show 21 is still loads of fun to play. Franchise is slightly improved, Diamond Dynasty continues to be strong, and Stadium Creator is even better than expected. However, there are areas of the game that don’t feel like an actual next-gen experience, and we’re still missing features that other sports games have had for years.”
PlayStation Universe(Neil Bolt)
“As a stop-gap, MLB The Show 21 is perfectly fine. The baseball is enjoyable, the mode variety is healthy. The few tweaks to the formula are welcome, and while the PS5 isn’t being tested greatly by the game, there are green shoots that indicate a healthy, promising future. What matters most though is that it’s still one of the most satisfying feelings in any sports game when you connect with that ball just right and send it sailing beyond the fences. The whole experience is encapsulated in that moment.”
Attack of the Fanboy(Dean James)
“Being the most consistent annual sports franchise out there, MLB The Show manages to overcome the loss of a few key features to give players yet another reason to step right back into the batter’s box in MLB The Show 21.”
Score 4/5
Screen Rant(Cade Onder)
“MLB The Show 21 is yet another solid entry in Sony’s now multi-platform sports franchise. The consistent tweaks to how the game functions and its quality-of-life improvements each year have helped create a balanced, solid foundation for each iteration to improve on. Even though MLB The Show 21 lacks in delivering a truly engrossing current-gen experience on the new consoles in some ways and has a few typical sports franchise pitfalls, it’s still an enjoyable game that has a high degree of craftsmanship.”
Score 3.5/5
GamesRadar+(Matt Paprocki)
“As far as your platform choices go, the current-gen editions bring the Stadium Editor and small visual boosts for $10 more. With cross-play available regardless of console (or console generation), if there’s a PS5 under your TV, you might as well aim there. Hopefully, in a year minus a global pandemic, the dev team can also bring some added visual kick, and keep expanding the feature set to completely separate the two.”
Hardcore Gamer(Cory Wells)
“San Diego Studios continue to try and improve an annual product that already has a fantastic core with MLB The Show 21. New Xbox players will be blown away at the realism and the gameplay options in the game while PlayStation players will appreciate the changes to the presentation and some of the visual improvements. The four main game modes don’t see any huge changes outside of Road to the Show, which may nab a mixed reaction from fans on how it was designed, but personally I feel it’s a good if unnecessary change. The visuals are still great, but there are next to no next-generation implementations across the board outside of running at 4K and 60 FPS, which does change the game especially if you didn’t try last year’s title on PS5. Whether on PlayStation or Xbox, MLB The Show 21 remains the gold standard for realistic sports games.”
Score 9/10
Push Square(Sammy Barker)
“MLB The Show 21 swings-and-misses in a few areas, with the well-intentioned Ballplayer system diminishing Road to the Show. Despite being stingier, though, Diamond Dynasty is still the best card collecting mode available, and the series’ tried and trusted gameplay has been further enhanced with the addition of Pinpoint Pitching and new fielding animations. Sony San Diego hasn’t quite hit a home run this year, but this is a strong lead-off double for baseball on PS5.”
Gfinity(Ricky Frech)
“MLB The Show 21 doesn’t quite knock this one out of the park. Instead, it’s one of the most well-hit doubles I’ve ever seen. The foundation San Diego Studios has cultivated over the years has allowed them to almost seamlessly transfer over to the next-gen and has me excited to see where the series goes from here.”
Pure Xbox(Fraser Gilbert)
“It’s a fantastic year to be getting MLB The Show 21 on Xbox. There’s a welcome ‘Casual’ preset for beginners, the gameplay is more enjoyable than ever, and newcomers will likely be overwhelmed (in a good way) at the sheer amount of content at their disposal. Road to the Show’s new Ballplayer integration won’t satisfy everyone, and needs a few tweaks, but it’s nevertheless still a highly enjoyable mode to play, and the likes of Diamond Dynasty and March to October are excellent options as well. We’ve been waiting a long time to experience The Show for ourselves on Xbox, and it’s amazing to finally be stepping up to the plate with MLB The Show 21 on Xbox Game Pass.”
The overall verdict seems to be thatMLB The Show 21is another great entry into the franchise. While not perfect and lacking in some features, it seems like it does a good job of bringing the game to a new console generation andmaking some quality of life improvements. Xbox fans, in particular, have every reason to pick this game up as part of Xbox Game Pass, while the game is also a worthwhile addition to the PlayStation 5’s library.
Currently, the PlayStation 5 version sits at 77 on Metacritic, while the Xbox Series X has yet to receive an overall critic score. However, it is worth noting the Xbox version has a 7.5 user review score, which is higher than PlayStation’s 5.0. This disparity in score suggests that long-time fans of the series are more critical than newer fans on Xbox.
As far as sports-based video games go, theMLB The Showhas always reviewed well, and the newest entry in the series seems to be no different. While some PlayStation fans may be upset to lose an exclusive, it is great to see more gamers playing Sony San Diego’s great series. With MLB publishing the game on Xbox,it may not be long until a PC version is announced,though nothing has been rumored or confirmed as of yet.
MLB The Show 21is available now on PlayStation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
