MLB The Show 22, an upcoming baseball simulation game developed by San Diego Studio, is eagerly anticipated by Major League Baseball fans and lovers of sports games alike. New information about MLB The Show 22‘s trophy list has been revealed ahead of the game’s Apr. 5 launch date. Though the revealed list may seem too easy to hardcore trophy hunters, the effortless difficulty actually makes it one of the better trophy lists. While not as much of a challenge, the trophies are still well worth collecting.
MLB The Show 22 steps up to the plate as the industry’s leading baseball game and one of PlayStation‘s crown jewels. As the game expands beyond PlayStation borders and onto new platforms such as Xbox and even the Nintendo Switch, the series trophy lists have become easier to achieve, making them more appealing to a broader audience.
MLB The Show 22‘s trophy list includes a typical arrangement of Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze trophies. However, they aren’t much of a challenge. The most scrutinized trophies are valuable Gold Trophies that only require players to reach Rookie difficulty while playing on Dynamic Difficulty mode. Rookie is one of the easiest difficulties in the game, and acquiring this Gold Trophy can be done in 30 minutes at most. The rest of the trophy list doesn’t involve difficulty requirements at all, with the only limitations coming from a few that require players to play a full nine-inning game without simulating forward.
Seeing the MLB The Show 22‘s trajectory toward an easier Platinum Trophy is not surprising when compared to PlayStation’s other first-party titles. PlayStation has recently been streamlining their trophy lists, like Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, whose trophies are mostly concerned with participating in every activity in the game, rather than difficulty. More people engaging with the trophy system is a plus for PlayStation, so a challenging experience is no longer important as long as the Platinum is obtainable by anyone.
Easier trophies make games more accessible to all kinds of players. Accessibility is an important pillar of the gaming industry, and PlayStation is one of the leading game publishers in accessibility options. From Horizon Forbidden West to The Last of Us Part II, accessibility options aiding physical and mental impairments are abundant, and this philosophy translates to how PlayStation designs trophy lists. The MLB is a massive sports league that reaches fans far beyond gaming circles, so an easier trophy list is more inclusive to all fans, whether they’re casual or hardcore gamers.
MLB The Show 22‘s easy trophy list makes sense when considering that it’s based on a yearly sports franchise. Longevity is not a huge factor when next year’s game will turn this year’s obsolete, so an easy trophy list allows more players to Platinum it before the next game comes out with a whole new trophy list to conquer. Trophies don’t need to extend the lifespan of the game when the game itself doesn’t last beyond the MLB season. Multiplayer and its live service help keep the content refreshing over time.
Difficulty isn’t what makes a trophy list fun — it’s the unique objectives that make up the list. A good trophy encourages players to engage with the systems at play in ways they naturally wouldn’t, and The Show accomplishes this. Trophies such as “Base Collector,” which asks the player to steal three bases within a full game, push players to take risks they may not normally take. Even the most controversial trophy about reaching Rookie difficulty via Dynamic Difficulty mode gives players a reason to try out the more experimental difficulty option instead of sticking to the difficulty they’re comfortable with.
PlayStation has come a long way since designing trophy lists in the PS3 era that focused more on punishing players. The Last of Us is a prime example of this, as completing the game on the hardest difficulty is a requirement for the Platinum Trophy. This bogs down the trophy hunting experience with a brutal difficulty that only unlocks after completing the game on an easier one, so players are forced to play through the game twice to acquire the Platinum Trophy. Requirements like this can quickly suck the fun out of trophy hunting.
Trophy lists are a delicate art form that must balance challenge and creativity to achieve peak player gratification. MLB The Show 22 may have an easy Platinum Trophy, but not focusing on difficulty makes the trophy hunt more accessible, fun, and rewarding for all players.
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