MLB The Show, San Diego Studios´ best-selling video game franchise, released MLB The Show 24 on March 15th, 2024, and since the release fans have been saying this is the best one released, but is that the case?
Road To The Show
Road to the Show, by far my favorite mode in the game allows you to live out your dreams of being an MLB star one day. This year´s changes include, bringing back the combine, but even better with playing for the USA baseball prospects team, showing off your skills, and playing in three showcase games to prove you are one of the top prospects. This year also included showtime moments where you are player-locked as yourself and you have the opportunity to make plays that change the outcome of the games. The best part of this year´s RTTS is the fact you can create a female to be in the MLB! This has been a dream of mine for a long time and now that it is reality is insane. I now can truly be myself in a video game that is made for males. Since Kelsie Whitmore broke the gender barrier in baseball in 2022, more girls have been involved in the game of baseball. This is truly a turning point in this generation. You can also use the virtual currency to buy equipment to make your player even better, and wear the equipment of your favorite MLB players such as the ARiA elbow and foot guard, Bryce Harper´s Under Armour cleats, and even Mookie Betts´ Wilson A2000 glove! I give this mode a 9.5/10, hands down my favorite mode.
March To October
This is a simulated full season, where you can get put into games after the 6th inning as your favorite players and are now in control of how the rest of the game is played. Sometimes you get to player lock as some of your favorite MLB players depending on what team you pick and if you do well enough, you can help give that player a boost for the rest of the season. You don´t get to play every game of the season but the ones you do, if you finish off well then a streak allows your team to win a couple of games in a row, but if you finish the game off bad, well then your team suffers. I give this mode an 8.5/10.
Franchise
This is your typical franchise mode where you play as your favorite team for a 162-game season. You are the GM of the franchise and make many big decisions such as trading players, signing free agents, and many more. In this mode, you can even lead your team to a World Series!
I give this mode an 8/10, not my favorite mode but not my least favorite.
Diamond Dynasty
Diamond Dynasty, by far the most popular mode as in any other sports game, is one of the coolest modes and MLB The Show 24 makes it even better than before! Diamond Dynasty is where you create your MLB Dream team using players who play currently and who also played in the past. On top of that, you can compete online with other players who love this game mode. I haven´t played online because that requires another subscription for PlayStation Plus, but there are many modes inside of Diamond Dynasty that you can still play against CPU with your MLB Dream team. I give this mode a 7.5/10, I have never really been a huge fan of this mode.
Storylines
This mode is something from last year´s game that carried into this year´s and I like it. Last year´s focus was on the Negro Leagues as it is a major part of the reason we have the MLB today. So this year´s mode is not a whole lot different from last year´s, except it is. This year, San Diego Studios added one of the greatest Yankees players ever, Derek Jeter. I am a sports almanac, and I like Derek Jeter as a player but I learned so much about Jeter through his storyline. One of the coolest moments you get to play through as Jeter is his famous jump throw from 1998. I give this mode a 9/10, really great and I think it can continue to be a great mode.
Overall this game deserves an 8.5/10. I do agree that this installment of the game is the best one yet and truly because they incorporated the ability to be a female in the MLB. I also really like that SDS finally decided to include sliding mitts into the game. 8 times out of 10, there is a baserunner in the pros that has a sliding mitt on, and some players such as Trea Turner even have two, one on each hand!
The only slight critique I have for this game is that there needs to be more body types for the females and also more hairstyles. Also maybe add some more customization when it comes to the equipment you can wear as a player. Outside of those few things, this game is incredible and I plan to play a lot of this until the next one comes out in March or April of next year.
