MLB The Show 24 Release Date, Game Modes, and More

Much like last year, this will be our “living document” that highlights everything you need to know about MLB The Show 24 as news rolls out, which includes info about game modes, its release date, new features, and so on.

Since MLB The Show 24 was just announced on January 30, we don’t have too much to go on quite yet, except of course that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the cover athlete. Still, we can still get you started as it’s a relatively tight pre-release schedule this year and so developer SDS will have a lot of ground to cover in the weeks ahead.

MLB The Show 24 Release Date And FAQ

As expected, MLB The Show 24 will be releasing on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox One Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch again this year (there remains no PC version). We are getting a March 19 release date, and this means early access will begin on March 15 for those who pre-order.

That said, we also now know about the collector’s edition and the other editions, so here’s the breakdown:

The Negro Leagues Edition (collector’s edition) will be $124.99 on the high end of the things and is limited in supply. On the lower end, the MVP Edition at $84.99 is the cheapest price you can pay to get in on early access. Again, this means just pre-ordering the basic version of the game will not get you early access.

One other slightly odd note is those on the PS5 who order the Negro Leagues Edition will not get a physical copy of the game, your steelbook will come with a download code inside. This means only folks on Xbox Series X can get the physical disc with the collector’s edition. This means you will need to order a standard version of the game if you want a disc on PlayStation 5 (all last-gen versions of the game are digital-only this year).

FAQ

SDS also updated its FAQ for MLB The Show 24, and there’s some information here worth passing along.

Business As Usual:

• There will be no year-to-year saves once again
• Cross progression and cross play remain there for all platforms
• Custom stadiums and logos will transfer from one game to the next
• There is no PC version once again
• You can download MLB The Show 24 on day one via Game Pass on Xbox consoles

New Changes:

• There will be no tech test this year.
• The PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game will only have a digital release

It’s a bummer about the tech test, but my guess is this is happening because it’s a tighter release schedule than last year. It’s always nice to get a look at the game and give that feedback but SDS either must feel confident in their product or just not have the bandwidth to pull that off this year.

As for the digital-only release for the PS4 and Xbox One, this is likely a sign that we’re getting close to the end of the cycle for last-gen releases. Some folks want these consoles to stop getting releases because they feel it’s holding back the current-gen versions — and there probably is some truth to that — and this is usually the first step before phasing out those older versions.

I also wonder if SDS has to release last-gen versions to satiate some sort of agreement with Microsoft dealing with Game Pass, or MLB to give access to as many folks as possible, or Sony due to the company wanting all its platforms supported. In other words, I’m sure SDS would be happy to move on from last-gen consoles at this point if it’s stunting the progress on current-gen consoles, I just don’t know if that decision is ultimately up to them.

Game Modes

Storylines: Negro Leagues Season 2

The first major modes info comes from something SDS introduced last year with Storylines. Negro Leagues Baseball Museum President Bob Kendrick revealed Negro Leagues Season 2 and Hank Aaron, Josh Gibson, Buck Leonard, and Toni Stone (first woman to play pro ball regularly in a men’s league) will be the players in the game at launch.

From there, we will get three more players in a content drop in early April, and then a couple weeks after that we will get three more players. Every player that was in Season 1 of Storylines will also return. The Storylines aspect will play out the same way as Season 1 did for the most part, but a couple additions will be there.

Moments within Storylines Season 2 will be skippable, allowing players to progress through the stories being told even if they get stuck on a Moment. A few other worthy tidbits include the implementation of a new and improved video presentation style. The production was topnotch last year, so if any work was invested in that area then it should be even better. Finally, it was stated that defensive Moments will be in Storylines this year.

A redesigned version of Forbes Field will appear in MLB The Show 24. This version features some specific updates to right field. Additionally, it was announced that we’d be getting at least one new stadium: Greenlee Field. Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Greenlee Field was home to the Pittsburgh Crawfords who will be featured prominently in this season of Storylines.

It wasn’t stated how many new stadiums overall there might be, but there will be at least one new addition.

Three Negro League teams will also receive multiple uniforms. The Indianapolis Clowns will have three unique jerseys in the game, the Pittsburgh Crawfords will have four uniforms, and the Homestead Grays will feature six unique uniforms.

Storylines: Derek Jeter

Another big surprise last year was Derek Jeter’s re-entry into baseball video games — he was also on the collector’s edition cover of the game. This year, we’ve been surprised once again as Jeter will be getting a Storylines of his own.

We’re not sure if the production values will quite reach the heights of what’s put together for Negro Leagues, but we do know it will go through many of the biggest moments of Jeter’s MLB career and involve Jeter himself in some of the presentation. In addition, the menus themselves and the look will take on a New York feel, so it’s going to feel like its own little world within a world.

Lastly, we know we’re getting The Kingdome (the old stomping grounds of the Seattle Mariners) via this announcement.

Road To The Show: Women Pave Their Way

First and foremost, this obviously means this will be the first time you can play as a woman ballplayer. There will be a unique storyline tied to this as well within RTTS. It centers around your ballplayer and can play out in various ways much like the other permutations of the mode.

In addition, there will be specific commentary, MLB Network segments, and various other presentation elements to spice things up.

Diamond Dynasty

Diamond Dynasty had a bit of a down year last season, and in part it was for okay reasons in that the team tried out a bunch of new stuff — it just didn’t hit for the fans. This year, it seems like they’re trying to course correct a bit and find the sweet spot for some of the new elements added last year.

This means they’re expanding Team Affinity to three chapters each season. The Cornerstone Cards and Starter Packs at the start of the new season seem to be ways to make the old Captains concept hit better and be more meaningful. There will be fewer 99-overall cards at the start of each season so you’re building to something more each season rather than fielding a monster team day one each time. And they will give us more chances to sell high-end cards once again.

Lastly, the seasons themselves are now going to be 12 weeks long, which ties into the idea of the extra Team Affinity drops each season.

New Legends

As of now, we only know about a handful of new legends:

• Buck Leonard
• Josh Gibson
• Toni Stone
• Paul O’Neill
• Andy Pettitte
• Bernie Williams
• Brian Dozier

Gameplay

While we don’t have hands-on time to go off as of now, at a high level, it seems like The Show is getting all the new rules into place. There will be new pitcher animations to tie into the new disengagement rules that were introduced last year. On top of that, the base sizes have been enlarged, there is a pitch clock, and you can only throw over three times per batter.

There are also 400+ new animations being touted, with many focused on fielding to further enhance fielder urgency and help make 1B make better throws all around the diamond.

Another major area of focus was with the pitching. There are now four more gestures to increase the total to 14. On top of that, the sinker’s difficulty has been increased and now all left-handed pitchers will have gestures that are flipped from the right-handed pitchers. PAR has also been refined so more pitches should accurately hit their spots when you input the motions correctly.

With hitting, because it was mostly thought of as positive (it was) SDS has mostly left the same balance in place so there won’t be major changes there out of the box.

Feature Premieres

Feature premieres have returned for MLB The Show 24. Every week leading up to launch, SDS will drop information in video form on their respective Twitch and YouTube channels. The full schedule can be seen below, but SDS is being more cagey about what is going to be in each feature premiere as of now.

• Negro Leagues Storylines Season 2 Feature Premiere (2/15)
• Derek Jeter Storylines Feature Premiere (2/22)