MLB The Show 20 Review: Gameplay Videos, Features, Modes and Impressions

Like a championship team looking to repeat, MLB The Show 20, from developer SIE San Diego Studios, arrives with hefty expectations after a great showing last time around.  

MLB The Show 20, like its predecessors, deals in smaller incremental updates splintering off in varying directions—hardcore players will notice the things like animation tweaks, while other additions work to make the game even more accessible. 

But this year's offering has a different challenge in front of it, as it follows up on the return to form that was MLB The Show 19 (Metacritic score of 86). 

With Javier Baez of the Chicago Cubs draped on the cover, a strong effort from MLB The Show 20 should have fans happy for another lengthy season. 

Graphics and Gameplay

It's hard to follow up on MLB The Show 19 from a presentation standpoint, as the offering pumped in new animations, crowd reactions and umpire behavior. 

Yet, most of these areas have received some love. The crowds look great and varied, there's a ton of noise and chatter surrounding the game itself, players react well when things happen, and broadcast-style previews and postgame details stand out. Dynamic weather is still a must-have feature. 

The Show doesn't change in some areas, though. Some player models still look stiff, and the facial animations when given a close-up can be hit or miss. The crowd reactions on the audio don't seem to match up with the action well at all times.

But contrasting almost oddly with this is the always-great shadow work and reflections off glossy helmets. There's sweat, great physics for the baseball and bats, and smaller details like the baserunner swaying his arms or umpires aligning and reacting properly.  

While presentation hasn't changed up as a whole, some great gameplay tweaks really enhance the feel. 

Gameplay is littered with the little updates like a new hitting tier, constituting two perfects in timing and contact that reward a skillful manipulation of timing and aim. 

Likewise in the outfield, the new extreme catch indicator works in small, important details like first step momentum. When it's a tough catch, the meter pops up and players have to figure out whether they want to aggressively get after it or play it conservatively. There's a throw-home meter, too, which is exactly what it sounds like—properly play the ball and the difficulty meter, and there is a chance to throw out a runner streaking for a score. 

These meters are a brilliant aspect to the game that manage to make playing defense fun (they also make it in for the infield and catchers as runners try to steal). The droves of realistic animations help, but it's nice to have a skill-based system around a player's rating that really impacts how the defense plays—no more autopilot. 

It should go without saying, but the tweaks to the throwing meter take some time to get used to but end up doing a better job of simulating the feel of fielding grounders and otherwise on the fly.

As always, there is an almost overwhelming amount of information available on screen at a given time. Swings, timing, pitcher information, charts and don't forget the pause menu with weather information, tendencies for pitcher and batter, and roster personnel info for each team. 

Players who want to dive into the nitty-gritty details can do so and (perhaps) gain a competitive edge. Those who want to ignore it and focus in on just hitting the ball or striking out the current batter won't be any worse for wear. 

Given another quality-of-life pass to animations and some significant tweaks to defense, it's safe to say MLB The Show 20 plays the best it has in years—if it doesn't revert in the coming iterations, this will be looked at as a gameplay turning point for the series. 

Custom Leagues and More

The vast number of modes and things to do allow players diving deep into only one or two modes to get the same level of enjoyment as a mode connoisseur. 

Road to the Show (RttS) is back, and while the shakeups this year aren't massive, it sure doesn't hurt to see it lean even more into RPG territory. 

There, challenges on the field in the moment give players the chance to increase their character's skills or their progression in one of the personality traits. These on-the-fly challenges feel like they have a big impact on win expectancy. 

Managing relationships and fleshing out a character in one of four archetypes (which allocate bonuses) gives something of an RPG-like presence to the whole affair. The conversations themselves aren't terribly interesting, but having the option of really taking a deep dive into a career and seeing some of the decisions pay off on the field is good. 

While RttS is the heavyweight mode, the two new offerings shouldn't be ignored. 

Custom leagues takes a long time to master. The ability to create leagues is a long-anticipated option, and longtime players will be happy to hear it's worth a look. Right from the jump, players can customize the number of teams, number of playoff participants, innings, games in a postseason series, designated hitters—the expected stuff, thankfully. 

That said, it's a little disappointing some of the critical general manager controls found in franchise mode don't make the cut here. It's a solid first step to get people finally playing in these leagues, but it isn't hard to see where it needs expanding in future games. 

Showdown within Diamond Dynasty is the other big talking point as a new mode. Players enter and draft star players and pick perks. Unlockables along the way grant access to more of both, all in the interests of gunning toward the final showdown. It's a nice addition to the Diamond Dynasty metagame and yet another game mode that throws players into specific minigame-style situations. This one is aptly named, as players find themselves tasked with keying a big comeback late in a game or other sweaty-palm scenarios. 

Overall, the card-based approach to the Diamond Dynasty probably won't win over players who didn't care for it in the past. But it's nice some of the experience paths are streamlined for those who don't enjoy the grind. Throwing in Showdown to simulate the tensest moments baseball can offer doesn't hurt. 

Over in franchise mode, it's refreshing to have the ability to create custom teams, and relocation is one of those long-requested items—and its implementation is strong and should meet expectations. And March to October also returns with an overhauled rewards system to make it a season-long process.

Between franchise mode and March to October, season and postseason play is accessible to all. Those who want the deepest seasons can hop into franchise and have a good time, even if it isn't changing too much. March to October is for the player who wants a condensed sprint to the playoffs while still baking in some strategy. 

On a details note—and this series majors in the minors in that regard—one glaring exception has finally been fixed thanks to using full licensed minor league rosters. It doesn't sound like a big deal, but it matters for the game's realism, and players are no longer stuck searching for the perfect minor league roster from other players on the roster share online.

Smaller modes like Retro and Moments serve a purpose again. The former is an especially fun look at how baseball games have changed over the years. 

While there are still pitfalls to the annual release cycle for sports games, the saving grace for MLB The Show 20 is its wealth of modes are handled with care and don't come close to feeling like it is merely a "more is better" approach.  

Conclusion

MLB The Show 20 is an apex for the series.

The theme of player choice reigns supreme again. Players can approach gameplay in the most basic manner possible or dive into the spreadsheets. There's an RPG-esque story, which is essentially a postseason simulator, a full-blown franchise and straight-up online leagues, never mind the card-collecting mode with surprising depth. 

Sprinkle atop some of the finest tunings to gameplay most sports games wouldn't bother to attempt, and MLB The Show 20 is a marked improvement for the series and a good sendoff to fans as one generation fades as another rises.