MLB The Show 25 Wishlist

Before you know it, MLB The Show 25 will be out. And while we’re still unsure of its exact release date, what we do know is that developer San Diego Studio has promised big changes for the baseball sim’s next entry that is due sometime in the early spring. But what do fans of series want these changes to be?

Having consulted with the Operation Sports community and observed the discourse surrounding MLB The Show 25 pre-release, it’s proper time we share with you an MLB The Show 25 wishlist of features and changes that we want to see.

Operation Sports’ MLB The Show 25 Wishlist

It’s Time To Leave Old Gen In The Past

With the gaming industry being five years into its current generation, it’s time for MLB The Show to leave old gen consoles (and Nintendo Switch players) in the past.

Look, we get it — gaming is an expensive hobby and not everyone has enough dough to afford the latest consoles, especially in this economy. But despite having tons of top-end hardware at its disposal, San Diego Studio has yet to make any real headway in terms of innovation with MLB The Show in years. And a big reason for that is because it is still catering to players that are on technologically obsolete platforms such as the Nintendo Switch.

MLB The Show Needs A PC Version

Speaking of leaving the old generation behind, MLB The Show needs a PC port. According to Main Leaf, PC gamers make up a majority of gaming market when not accounting for mobile games. And yet, MLB The Show has zero presence on the platform.

While it doesn’t seem likely a viable competitor to MLB The Show will appear any time soon, Sony Interactive Entertainment can’t be satisfied with ostracizing such a massive part of the video game ecosystem. And it’s only reasonable to want a version of the game on PC at some point.

Some Kind Of Classic Mode

There are fewer sports in North America with as rich a history as baseball. This is America’s Pastime after all. But for some reason, outside of some cards you can get in Diamond Dynasty and the Negro Leagues Storylines, there really isn’t any mode dedicated to celebrating past eras of the game.

Why can’t players revisit the Cincinnati Reds’ “Big Red Machine” dynasty of the 1970s? Or relive the best moments of the New York Yankees’ “Murderers’ Row” era in the 20s? No sport is as ripe for revisiting classic moments or time periods than baseball is. And while we all love the Negro Leagues mode and the stories it tells, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to want more.

Diamond Dynasty Needs A Better Power Creep

For anyone who’s a Diamond Dynasty player, it’s common knowledge that MLB The Show has been in need of a new power creep for years. For the last few years, SDS has attempted to balance the game through Sets and Seasons in an effort to create an ever-changing flow of content and encourage players to try out different cards. But that seems to have diminishing returns with the fan base, who prefer a more traditional and progressive power creep.

To their credit, it seems SDS might be moving in this direction as the developer has already announced that Sets and Seasons will no longer be a thing in MLB The Show 25. But it remains to be seen how well (or poorly) it will be implemented.

Barry Bonds

Late last year, it was announced that Barry Bonds — one of baseball’s most prolific and controversial stars — would be teaming up with renowned card company Topps to produce certified autographed cards to be released at some point in 2025. With Topps being the sponsor of all the Diamond Dynasty cards in MLB The Show, speculation immediately began regarding Bonds’ potential involvement in new titles moving forward.

Having opted out of the MLB Players’ Association back in 2003, Bonds hasn’t been featured in an MLB game since MLB 2003 due to licensing issues. But now that the all-time home run leader has teamed up with Topps, fans have hope that Bonds will eventually appear in MLB The Show at some point down the road.

It’s too early to say whether or not Sony Interactive Entertainment will entertain the idea of licensing Bonds. But it would certainly be big if they did.

Deeper Road To The Show And Franchise Modes

While Diamond Dynasty players haven’t had a shortage of content to sink their teeth into the past several years, MLB The Show players who prefer the single-player experience have certainly been left out in the cold. In MLB The Show 24, both Road to the Show and Franchise modes were more or less untouched and offered an experience that was too derivative of past titles.

Competitive multiplayer gaming is certainly one of the biggest attractions in sports games, o it can be understood why SDS and Sony’s priorities have been focused on Diamond Dynasty. But single-player users can’t be expected to fork out $60 or more each year for a simple rehash of mechanics they’ve all grown tired of. If MLB The Show is to avoid ostracizing a big portion of its player base, making large scale improvements to these modes should be high on the to-do list.

This is our MLB The Show 25 wishlist. What do you want to see in this year’s entry? Let us know down in the comments!