The second feature premiere of MLB The Show 24’s pre-release schedule was all about Derek Jeter.
The Captain is receiving his own Storylines treatment alongside Season 2 of The Negro Leagues. When this mode was teased a couple days ago, we didn’t really know if it would be the full-documentary style production like the Negro Leagues last year.
This week’s feature premiere not only confirmed that was true, but highlighted just how much detail went into celebrating Derek Jeter’s career.
MLB The Show 24 – Storylines Derek Jeter
Content Structure
In SDS’ initial announcement of the mode, it was revealed that 1995-2000 would be the first segment of Jeter’s career highlighted. Early on in the feature premiere, it was confirmed that 2001-2014 would release this year and drop a couple weeks after launch.
Players will be able to unlock content by playing through the mode. It’s a safe bet we’ll see things like bat skins, uniforms, stadiums, and potentially Diamond Dynasty cards.
The fact that we’ll get another staggered release with Storylines: Derek Jeter means we’ll have a guaranteed content trickle that we didn’t have last year. This measured infusion of Storylines content between Derek Jeter and Negro Leagues Season 2 should help keep engagement at a respectable level in between all the other modes.
It sounds like we’ll still be able to skip Moments in order to progress the story, similar to Negro Leagues Season 2. Again, it remains to be seen if this means you can skip Moments and still unlock the content or if it’s just a way to get through the story.
Derek Jeter himself will be featured in the documentary-style interviews, which should be a real treat.
The Kingdome Returns
Right off the bat, we learned that the infamous Seattle Kingdome stadium will be included in MLB The Show 24. MLB The Show is rather notorious for not including new stadiums on a regular basis. The advent of the stadium creator at least allowed players some creative outlets (albeit domes are not really part of that either), but the inclusion of a studio-designed Kingdome is truly awesome news for those of us old enough to remember the Mariners’ old stomping grounds.
It sounds like The Kingdome will be available in all relevant game modes in MLB The Show 24.
Legends
In addition to the reveal that The Kingdome was coming, we also got our first taste of modern legend announcements.
As part of Storylines: Derek Jeter, The Core Four will be highlighted prominently. This group was integral to the New York Yankees’ dynasty of the ’90s and early 2000s.
Paul O’Neill, Andy Pettitte, and Bernie Williams are confirmed as new legends in The Show. Pettitte joins Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and Jorge Posada to complete the Core Four grouping in MLB The Show 24.
New, New York
One of the biggest selling points of Storylines: Derek Jeter is a brand new UI built for the mode. SDS’ design team put an incredible amount of work in to bringing this interactive narrative to life. While Moments have been around for a while and the graphics/gameplay might not be drastically different, the mode itself has been given every attention to detail imaginable.
The UI specifically looks modern and super clean. It actually doesn’t look much like anything usually featured in MLB The Show, which I think is a refreshing sign and welcomed change.
Storylines is truly evolving into a must-play mode within MLB The Show and this amount of detail is appreciated.
Bottom Line
Storylines: Derek Jeter is everything we could possibly want it to be. Mirroring the Negro Leagues design with a documentary-style narrative, baseball fans get a chance to relive one of modern baseball’s most iconic legends.
We got a reveal for a new classic stadium (Kingdome) and some new legends (O’Neill, Pettitte, Williams) which feels like the first true nuggets of information so far.
Looking ahead, the feature premiere on March 7 will be a double feature. We’ll be getting the ratings reveal show along with the promise of gameplay.
Gameplay and a legitimate trailer has been sorely missing so far, so we’ll see what drops between now and March 7.
MLB The Show 24 will be available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch on March 19. Available for pre-order now. Select pre-orders include Early Access beginning on March 15.
