TheMLB The Showseries has been one of the premiere baseball simulation games for years now, andMLB The Show21looks to be overhauling the game’s formula to make it the most exciting installment yet. The series has a lot riding on this year’s version of the game. Not only will it be the game’s first appearance on next-gen consoles, but for the first time ever the PlayStation exclusive will be coming to Xbox. This new market of gamers is sure to bring a lot of fresh eyes to the series, and developer San Diego Studio already looks to be doing all it can to makeMLB The Show 21memorable.
The wayMLB The Show 21has been shaping up, it would appear that San Diego Studio is listening to fans more than ever. The developer has already promised a number of brand new features, one of the most exciting beingthe new Stadium Creator mode. In a recent presentation, a couple of developers at San Diego Studio showed off some new gameplay mechanics, with a particular focus on pitching.MLB The Show 21seems to be doing everything it can to give players a bevy of options, while also ensuring that they receive the best feedback possible.
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Perfect Accuracy Region
The first new pitching feature that the presentation showed off was the Perfect Accuracy Region, or PAR for short.Something that many players have taken issue within the past is how perfect pitches with all-star pitchers don’t land where players mean for them too. The PAR clears up this confusion by adding a circle around where players are trying to locate their ball, illustrating the range of accuracy for that particular pitch. This region will be applied to the pure analogue, meter, and brand new pinpoint pitching modes, and each will differ in accuracy. Pinpoint pitching will have the smallest PAR, and pure analogue will have the biggest.
Pinpoint Pitching
MLB The Show 21will be introducing a brand new pitching interfacecalled pinpoint pitching. This pitching option aims to really challenge players, giving them a high-risk, high-reward approach when they take the mound. The process of each pitch will have its own unique movements that players will have to execute with the right stick. The real challenge for this pitching mode will come from the timing required for each pitch. The movements and timing required for a fastball will be different from a curveball, so getting the intricacies down will be vital.
Enhanced Feedback
In addition to the new pitching interfaces and PAR system, players are going to receive much more feedback on their pitches. Although it was only shown with pinpoint pitching during the preview,MLB The Show 21is going to let players know just about everything in regards to how well they’re throwing. Players will be able to see their accuracy when tracing the pitch movements, their timing, and the final angle of each pitch as soon as they throw it. Theseenhancements toThe Showwill take more of the guesswork out of pitching, and give players a better idea of where they might need to improve.
San Diego Studio has promised more feature premieres as the release toMLB The Show 21comes closer. With the addition of stadium creator and these pitching enhancements, it’s clear that SDS is doing everything it can to make this year’s game something special. Most yearly sports games only have incremental changes, butMLB The Showhas routinely stood out among the rest. Now thatthe game is able to take advantage of next-gen hardware, future installments are likely to be even more impressive.
MLB The Show 21is releasing on June 29, 2025, for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S.
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