I’m not the finger-pointing type. If something goes wrong or I observe something that is wrong, my first instinct is to determine how (or if) that something can be fixed. Because by the time something has gone wrong, the blame game becomes nothing more than a distraction. Of course, blame is a part of the process. But it’s something that’s traditionally best left once an issue has been resolved. You know, the whole “what did we learn” moment.
But, in the case of MLB The Show 25 and its graphics, some finger-pointing seems to be in order. When MLB The Show 25 was revealed, fans of the series rejoiced when they discovered that the latest entry in the long-running baseball sim franchise would be ditching old-gen consoles such as the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and would instead be limited to current-gen consoles, the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X|S. But current-gen consoles also include one other system…
You see, one other platform was included in the list of consoles, and it wasn’t the PC. Instead, MLB The Show 25 will be available for the Nintendo Switch when it eventually launches on March 18.
As more has been revealed about MLB The Show 25 since its unveiling, many have pointed out the graphics in the series have been left untouched despite being labeled as a “current-gen exclusive.” We’ve even had some OSers going full-on Zapruder film on the dirt and grass to see if those things have been improved. While it’s hyperbolic to say the graphics have gone untouched (lighting among other things does look improved), the latest MLB The Show title is not a current-gen exclusive. And that is because it is available for the Switch.
Because of Sony San Diego Studio and/or Major League Baseball’s insistence on making its game available on the console, some concessions are needed. Because the Switch is not a current-gen console. In fact, it was hardly current gen when it launched.
Even compared to contemporaries such as the aforementioned PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the Nintendo Switch was greatly outmatched in terms of hardware specs. This gulf in performance only increased over time as its competitors introduced refreshes such as the PS4 Pro or Xbox One X. But that was hardly an issue for the Switch as graphical fidelity and high performance were never the selling points. Instead, the selling point was Nintendo itself (the company is notoriously stingy about its intellectual property), and the novelty of it being a platform capable of being converted from a handheld to a traditional console (albeit docked) in an instant.
Because of people’s affinity for the Switch, it remains one of the world’s most popular gaming platforms, despite Sony and Microsoft both offering far more in terms of performance. This is a tale as old as time for Nintendo at this point, and it’s no shade towards that company — we love Nintendo. However, because of this many publishers and developers will continue to port their newest titles to Nintendo’s consoles.
Anyone who’s following along so far can likely see where I’m going with this. But for any who aren’t catching my drift, let me put it this way: MLB The Show is unlikely to make massive leaps in the graphical department so long as it’s being made compatible with the Switch. Graphical upgrades are already waning in a general sense between console generations as hardware leaps are no longer as profound as they were in the ’80s up through the start of the HD generation. With that in mind, you’re only hamstringing yourself further by trying to stay compatible with outdated hardware.
If SDS has to develop a game and make it available for a console that was bordering on being obsolete (spec-wise) even when it was launched 8 years ago, it means you aren’t going to see any kind of major graphical improvement with MLB The Show. Alternatively, the game could be developed into two different versions — one for the PS5/Xbox Series X|S, and another for the Switch. Developers did this plenty with older Nintendo platforms such as the Wii. But SDS/Sony/MLB want Switch players to have access to its cross-play features, so that solution seems completely out the door for now.
Now, there is good news. The Nintendo Switch 2 has been announced, and if it stays on track, it will be out at some point this year. This means MLB The Show 26 will be a new litmus test. So maybe, just maybe, we can see the series take a significant leap in terms of graphical quality next year.
But for as long as games — namely sports games — continue to release for the Switch (and are adamant about cross-play being a feature), don’t expect much in the way of major graphical improvements.
Published: Feb 26, 2025 04:51 pm