When MLB The Show 21 was released, it also joined the Xbox Game Pass lineup, but that didn't hurt its sales. According to a recent report from Sony, MLB The Show 21 on Xbox is a large part of its success.
MLB The Show 21 has exceeded Sony Interactive Entertainment's expectations, resulting in increased quarterly profits. Spotted on Twitter recently by industry analysts Mat Piscatella and Daniel Ahmad, the quarterly earnings report is making its rounds online. The company specifically credits the game's launch on platforms outside of the PlayStation ecosystem such as Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
According to the recent quarterly report from Sony, MLB The Show 21 has seen strong add-on sales as well as its sales success. The report credits Days Gone, MLB The Show 21, and Horizon Zero Dawn launching on non-PlayStation platforms as a strong factor behind Sony's quarterly success. The quarterly report also credits add-on sales for improved profits.
Sony was expecting a quarterly decrease in sales of first-party software due to The Last of Us Part 2 releasing during the same quarter of last year. Although the company expected a decrease, the sales of MLB The Show 21 and Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart exceeded its expectations. It's likely that MLB The Show 21 fans on the Xbox platforms also contributed to add-on sales, which further added to Sony's quarterly revenue.
Although the recent quarterly earnings report from Sony credits sales on other platforms for increased profits, the report does show some decreases on the PlayStation side of things. Software and network services revenue on the platform decreased by 15% compared to the same time last year. Total gameplay time has also decreased by 32% compared to last year, but it remains 18% higher than the same time in 2019.
MLB The Show 21 launched on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S at the same time as PS4 and PS5 which likely helped the sales of the game stay high. The game's inclusion in the Xbox Game Pass lineup made several PlayStation fans speculate that sales on Xbox would be hurt, but that isn't the case according to this quarterly report.
PlayStation has already mentioned that more games will be coming to other platforms and this increased quarterly profit gives fans an idea as to why. This sales success on other platforms will likely solidify PlayStation's expansion onto PC and Xbox. Some fans on Twitter are still hoping for an MLB The Show 21 release on the Nintendo Switch, but others are hoping for more titles on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
MLB The Show 21 is available right now for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.