Towards the end of the 2023 MLB The Show cycle, I wrote about Sets and Seasons and pondered the innovation. It was polarizing within the community for many reasons. For many players, the slow improvement of their squad is part of Diamond Dynasty's allure. Starting off with lower-rated cards and attempting to maximize roster building is perhaps the most addicting element of the mode.
Juiced-up 99 overall cards are also part of the mode's allure, and SDS was thinking way outside the box.
Out with the Old
No matter your individual attachment to MLB The Show or Diamond Dynasty, part of the mode's fun is collecting new cards throughout the year. For new cards to be exciting, they need to be more appealing than the cards already available. Naturally, there's many ways to build a team in Diamond Dynasty and you don't have to necessarily follow the linear upgrade path.
But that's the sweetness, the juice; the good stuff. It's what makes cracking virtual packs so fun or grinding programs seem worth it.
Every sports game has a card collecting/team-building component these days. For as long as I can remember, they've all followed the same pattern: low-rated cards in the beginning, slow increases throughout the year, then a total onslaught of beefy cards to end the content cycle. Once the new game launches, the cycle begins again.
That cycle was the easiest thing in the world to keep going, but SDS took a risk and tried something new.
New Hotness
The regularity of modes like Diamond Dynasty are almost certainly a slam-dunk when it comes to additional revenue. Long gone are the days where I lament microtransactions because they've been in games forever now - let's stop acting like we reject it when we all partake.
However, one of SDS' best traits was always the fact that they were pretty user friendly when it came to Stubs and packs.
The advent of Sets and Seasons eroded that goodwill until a quarter of the way through MLB The Show 24. The prospect of elite 99 overall cards from day one was fun and exciting, but for many, the lack of drive to grind for improvement killed their desire to play the game. As more elite cards were shifted into premium packs and less cards were available in programs, the community voiced their displeasure.
Again, SDS pivoted and revived their content after a balky beginning to MLB The Show 24's content cycle. For me, MLB The Show 24 quickly became my favorite iteration of the game as SDS reminded us why we fell in love with them and their game to begin with.
Meet the Creeper
When I wrote about Sets and Seasons toward the end of MLB The Show 23's cycle, I opined that Sets and Seasons was a good idea that simply needed some extra work. Captains were underused in '23 and much more could have been done. That had me personally optimistic for the second iteration of Sets and Seasons last year.
With Diamond Dynasty's return to the power creep format, I think that settles the overall experiment. I still think we should acknowledge SDS for taking a huge risk. This wasn't some miniscule design change as it directly affected their bottom line, and directly affected how we all engaged with their product.
For as much as I enjoyed Sets and Seasons as a premise, I don't feel they ever truly hit the mark. I think the concept still has potential, but even I'm salivating at starting Diamond Dynasty later this week with a lower-rated team and seeing how Captain effects and other surprises might make this a great year in Diamond Dynasty.
Closing Thoughts
I'm glad we got to experience Sets and Seasons, as I always thought there was massive potential with adjusting the content pipeline. Most importantly, I'm glad that SDS heard fans and went back to the more traditional approach. That isn't to say it'll be exactly the way it used to be, or maybe it will.
Personally, I'm banking on SDS implementing everything they learned over the last two years and I'll boldly predict that Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show 25 will be the best iteration of it yet.
Just a couple more days! There will be news dropping every day up until Early Access begins on Friday, March 14. Stay tuned to ShowZone for all the latest news!
Cory Wayne Dell
Cory has been writing about all things baseball and gaming since 2022 and has been featured at Operation Sports as well as cited by Forbes. Cory is also a multi-instrumentalist and founder of the band Cargocastle. Cargocastle's latest single, "Truth and Reconciliation," is available on Spotify and all major streaming platforms. Cory is also the author of Shadow of a Monster, a personal memoir currently seeking publication.
