Will MLB the show ever come to PC?

MLB The Show 21 broke barriers for the Sony-developed simulation baseball franchise. Not only did the series jump to the current generation of consoles for the first time, but it also became the first game to be available for the Xbox family of consoles. However, The Show still hasn’t become available on other platforms, including the Nintendo Switch and PC, as of 2021. Will that change for MLB The Show 22? Here’s what we know so far.

On January 31, San Diego Studios released first information regarding MLB The Show 22. SDS announced that Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani would be on the cover for MLB The Show 22, and that the franchise would be launching for old and current-gen Xbox and PlayStation platforms, plus for the very first time, the Nintendo Switch.

However, PC did not luck out in this announcement. SDS confirmed that on release date, MLB The Show 22 will be available on the platforms listed above, and not for the PC. While it is possible that The Show 22 could be released for the PC later on this year, we only know that the game has been confirmed to go live on April 5 for the Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo consoles.

This continues the trend of sports games seemingly neglecting PC, in favor of consoles. Some sports franchises, including the Madden and FIFA series of games, opted not to release the current-generation version for PC in 2021, and instead launched the old-generation edition. And in the case of NHL, EA has opted not to do one at all, as has been the case for over a decade. It appears that this trend will continue with MLB The Show, as well.

Every year Sony San Diego releases its licensed MLB game and for most of its life, that game was exclusive to PlayStation consoles. However, more recently MLB the Show has now gone multiplatform and arrived on platforms like Xbox and the Nintendo Switch. Can you play MLB The Show 22 on PC though?

Can You Play MLB The Show 22 On PC? – Answered

The answer is no, you can not play MLB The Show 22 on PC. While the series has branched out to be on more consoles it has yet to make the jump to PC. You’ll still need either a PlayStation, Xbox, or Nintendo Switch to Play MLB The Show 22.

If you’re looking to stream it to your PC that’s an option using the PlayStation and Xbox streaming services, but you’ll still need the consoles to do so. This option would just let you access the console via your PC, but the game itself is still running on the console hardware.

It’s possible that in the future MLB The Show 22 potentially gets a PC release or you might have to wait for newer entries to arrive. Either way, at the current moment MLB The Show 22 is not available on PC and has not been announced to be in the future.

If you are waiting for MLB The Show 22 to be on PC, you shouldn’t get your hopes up…

Most sports franchise games never make the jump to PC and if we had to guess, the idea of modding famous athletes on platforms like Steam seems like a dangerous game to the league and the players. Something the sports organizations would probably like to avoid at all costs.

Games like Super Mega Baseball 3 and Out of the Park Baseball 23 can act as alternatives to the PC players who need their baseball fix, however they will obviously have their differences.

For many years, Sony has had a monopoly on Major League Baseball video games, and MLB: The Show titles could only be found on PlayStation consoles. However, in 2019, Sony made the surprising announcement that MLB: The Show would be heading to other platforms. This came into effect with MLB: The Show 21 which was released on both Xbox and PlayStation consoles. With the upcoming release of MLB: The Show 22, the franchise will expand its reach once more by releasing on PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo.

While it is good that plenty more gamers will get to enjoy the critically acclaimed MLB: The Show series, it seems that PC gamers have conspicuously been neglected. This is unfortunate because a PC release of MLB: The Show 22 would bolster Sony's efforts to infiltrate the PC gaming market while giving a great game even more ways to shine.

RELATED: MLB: The Show 22's Multiplatform Release Proves Sony's Commitment

Sony Enters the PC Gaming Market

Much of PlayStation's history has been spent convincing gamers to purchase its consoles by offering enticing gaming experiences that can only be found on the platform. Consequently, Sony has built up an impressive stable of first-party studios that have delivered award-winning exclusive titles that can only be played on PlayStation consoles.

Sucker Punch has brought gamers franchises like Infamous and Sly Cooper, while Naughty Dog created the iconic The Last of Us series, which takes gamers on a dystopian zombie adventure. Although this strategy has served Sony well in the past, it may not be viable indefinitely into the future and, as a result, recent years have seen the company begin to expand the ways games can access PlayStation's gaming catalog.

Sony offers PlayStation Now, a video game streaming service available in a limited number of regions. With PlayStation Now, gamers can play a curated catalog of PS2, PS3, and PS4 on either PlayStation consoles or PC. PlayStation Now represents Sony's first few steps away from its console home base and illustrates the company's slow but steady embrace of the PC gaming market.

Many once-exclusive PlayStation titles have found their way onto PC in recent years. This includes Days Gone, Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, God of War, and Death Stranding. While this may have been unthinkable once, it has become routine for PlayStation to make PC releases. This is all part of the grand plan, as explained by Jim Ryan, who is Sony Interactive Entertainment's president and CEO. Ryan states that while a successful PlayStation game, currently, reaches twenty million people, he wishes to raise that target to "hundreds of millions of people". Penetrating the PC market is one of the ways Sony can do this.

RELATED: The Most Downloaded PlayStation Games of 2021 Emphasize Sports Games Are Far From Niche

Recent studio acquisitions by Sony demonstrate the company's commitment to PC gaming. In 2021, Sony acquired Nixxes Software, a studio that specializes in making PC ports. Past PC ports made by the studio include Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided. With Nixxes Software under Sony's umbrella, the company will be better equipped to deliver more PlayStation games to PC.

Sony also recently announced that it would be acquiring Bungie, the studio responsible for the popular online FPS series Destiny. The studio has experience with PC gaming thanks to Destiny 2 which has found great success in the PC gaming market. As head of PlayStation Studios Hermen Hulst explains, Sony hopes to gain from Bungie's skills and expertise.

MLB: The Show Could Be Sony's Next PC Hit

The MLB: The Show series has received a warm reception from both gamers and critics thanks to its impressive graphics, refined gameplay, and its inclusion of real-world baseball players and brands. The success of the series has only been increasing, and this has been boosted by its recent multiplatform releases. MLB: The Show 21 was the first game to go multiplatform in the series, and it is the fastest-selling entry in the franchise's history, having managed to sell over 2 million copies across all platforms.

A PC release of MLB: The Show would further expand the reach of the growing franchise. It could also provide an opportunity for the series to take advantage of PC Game Pass. When MLB: The Show 21 was released on Xbox consoles, it was available on Xbox Game Pass, which allows a greater number of gamers to play the game. Continuing the trend, MLB: The Show 22, when it releases, will also be available on Xbox Game Pass on day one. With a PC release, the game could also take advantage of PC Game Pass which would result in more gamers being exposed to the MLB: The Show franchise.

As of 2022, it is reported that Microsoft has over 25 million Game Pass subscribers, making games released on the subscription services instantly available to a huge audience of gamers. Game Pass' subscription numbers surpass those of Sony's subscription service PlayStation Now which has a little over 3 million subscribers. If Sony's main aim is to maximize the reach of its games, then not releasing future MLB: The Show games on PC and making them available on Game Pass is a fool's move.

It seems that although Sony is recognizing the potential the PC gaming market has to expand PlayStation's reach, its embrace of the platform has been a long, gradual process. While many games that have been cornerstones of PlayStation's brand have made the jump to PC, there are still a few titles that, inexplicably, have yet to be ported. MLB: The Show 22, which appeals to a wide range of gamers and baseball fans, could have been an opportunity for Sony to increase its presence in the PC gaming market. The success of MLB: The Show 21 on Xbox demonstrates that gamers on non-PlayStation platforms are hungry for quality baseball games. Hopefully, with future MLB: The Show releases, the PC gaming platform will get a little more attention.

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