MLB The Show 19 will not feature Online Franchise mode, Sony confirms
Sony San Diego has confirmed the disappointing news that MLB The Show 19 will not feature Online Franchise mode for the second straight year.
This week, Sony San Diego debuted the first official gameplay trailer for MLB The Show 19. The trailer highlighted many new features and mechanics, including improved defensive situational awareness and player efficiency, additional Legends and some new items for Road to the Show.
Noticeably absent from the trailer, however, was any sort of mention of Franchise mode, and by association, an Online Franchise option.
Now it’s probably safe to assume MLB The Show 19 will have some sort of single-player franchise option for baseball fans; but, it likely hasn’t received much attention in the offseason. At least that’s the impression Sony has given off by omitting it from the trailer.
And while baseball enthusiasts will still be able to build their favorite team into a World Series contender, there’s another aspect of the mode that’ll likely leave some disappointed.
MLB The Show 19 will not feature Online Franchise. The disappointing news was confirmed via The Show’s message boards from Victor from SDS.
"Online Franchise will not be featured in MLB The Show 19. We understand this is disappointing and we are always exploring new ways to provide similar experiences in an online environment."
This marks the second straight year Online Franchise mode has not been featured in the Sony-exclusive baseball franchise, and it’s incredibly disappointing – especially as someone who loves to compete with friends online environment that’s more realistic than the fantasy baseball approach that is Diamond Dynasty.
I don’t want to build a fantasy team and compete online. I want to take the Chicago Cubs, with their current roster and continue building them, competing with friends who are controlling their favorite teams. We’re just not fans of the fantasy baseball version.
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Of course, this isn’t entirely surprising. Modes like Diamond Dynasty (and EA’s Ultimate Team), offer Sony more opportunity to make additional money through microtransactions. There’s just not enough incentive for them to focus the resources on a mode that won’t generate continuous sources of revenue.
At least that’s this bitter fan’s theory for the continuous lack of attention given to Franchise. And we see the same thing in other sports games like Madden where even though it has an Online Connected Franchise mode, it has been largely ignored the past few years.
The good news is Sony has confirmed this prior to the game’s launch, so you can make your decision accordingly. Unfortunately, baseball fans don’t really have many options to choose from when it comes to baseball games. It’s either buy MLB The Show 19 and deal with it not having Online Franchise, or opt with the more arcade-like R.B.I. Baseball franchise.