For years, Sony has dominated the baseball gaming scene, releasing one MLB: The Show entry after another with strong sales and high review scores. Since MLB: The Show games are developed by Sony's San Diego Studio, the vast majority of them have released exclusively on PlayStation platforms. That changed when MLB: The Show 21 released on Xbox as a day one Xbox Game Pass game, something that's happening yet again with this year's entry, MLB: The Show 22.
Sony has officially announced MLB: The Show 22, which will launch for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and even the Nintendo Switch come April 5. MLB: The Show 22 will be a day one Xbox Game Pass game like its predecessor, meaning those with a Game Pass subscription on Xbox will have immediate access to a PlayStation-published game on the very day that it launches. Those playing on PS4 and PS5 will have to pay full price for it.
MLB: The Show 22 is breaking down console boundaries even further with its release on the Nintendo Switch and the confirmation that it will support cross-saves across all platforms. So someone could play the game at home on a PlayStation console and then take it on the go with them using the Switch. This would require buying multiple copies of the game, of course, but hardcore MLB: The Show enthusiasts may very well think it's worth the asking price.
MLB: The Show 22 coming to Nintendo Switch and being a day one Xbox Game Pass game is a rather unique situation and marks a first for PlayStation-published games. Fans shouldn't expect other first-party Sony games to start making their way to competing platforms anytime soon, but it's still clear that the barriers between the consoles are thinner than ever before.
Besides confirming MLB: The Show 22's release date, platforms, and its status as a day one Xbox Game Pass game, it's also been confirmed who exactly is gracing the cover of this year's game. The MLB: The Show 22 cover athlete is standout player Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels, appearing on standard editions of the game. MLB: The Show 22 will also have a collector's edition that has yet to be revealed, but we do know that it will feature a different cover athlete.
A proper gameplay reveal and other details on MLB: The Show 22 are still waiting in the wings, so it will definitely be interesting to see how it stacks up to MLB: The Show 21, gameplay-wise. Hopefully fans don't have to wait too much longer to find out.
MLB: The Show 22 launches April 5 for PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.