MLB The Show 21, a PlayStation published game, is launching day-one on Xbox Game Pass. Microsoft announced the deal yesterday, marking another astonishing turn of events as Sony begins to open up to the idea of multi-platform releases.
Weirdly, this means Xbox gamers will get a better deal, being able to play MLB The Show 21 through Game Pass, rather than forking out the full £59.99 price tag. PlayStation gamers don’t have a Game Pass alternative, so PS4 and PS5 owners will have to buy the game outright.
Still, this is a smart move. Many Xbox-only gamers have likely never played MLB The Show, so bringing the title to Game Pass opens the door for a lot of players to try out the game for the first time and as Phil Spencer and a number of developer partners have confirmed, Game Pass engagement often leads to increased sales for a game.
We’ve known for a while now that Sony is opening up to the idea of bringing certain PlayStation exclusives to other platforms. MLB The Show is one such title, as future iterations of the series will release on PlayStation, Xbox and even Nintendo Switch. We’ve also seen the likes of Horizon Zero Dawn and Days Gone announced for PC, with other PlayStation IP set to follow over the next few years.
MLB The Show 21 is releasing on Xbox and PlayStation consoles on the 20th of April. We don’t know how long the game will be available on Game Pass, but Microsoft always gives a heads-up weeks ahead of time before titles leave the service.
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KitGuru Says: While a lot of PlayStation-loyalists may not like this idea, it makes perfect sense business wise. The Xbox platform is brand new for this IP, so making it accessible and getting as many players in as possible is only going to help the game out in the long-run.