Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

MLB The Show 21 was April’s bestselling game despite launching on Xbox Game Pass

By

MLB The Show 21 was the bestselling game in the United States during April and set a “new franchise high” in terms of launch month dollar sales. This is notable, as MLB The Show 21 is the first game in the series to appear on the Xbox ecosystem, following 15 years of exclusivity on PlayStation platforms.

The news comes by way of Mat Piscatella of the NPD Group, which tracks video game sales in the United States. Piscatella said MLB The Show 21 not only debuted as the month’s bestselling game, but is now the third-bestselling game of 2021 year to date.

Recommended Videos

https://twitter.com/MatPiscatella/status/1397900294667726851

Related
The release of MLB The Show is historic, because it debuted on an Xbox platform, Xbox Game Pass, the same day it was released. Titles downloaded via Game Pass aren’t counted in monthly reports since they aren’t actual sales. Despite this, The Show 21 still managed to become the month’s bestseller, and the second-bestselling game on Xbox platforms, including Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

If you count digital sales and those downloaded through Game Pass, MLB The Show 21 reached a wider audience than ever before. This shows the decision to release the game on other platforms has been a lucrative one for MLB and San Diego Studio.

While the series from Sony-owned San Diego Studio  still remains a first-party PlayStation franchise, it will be multiplatform going forward.

Elsewhere in the NPD report, we received word that New Pokémon Snap debuted as the third-bestselling game of the month, Mortal Kombat 11 jumped up to the sixth spot due to the recent release of the new film in the franchise, and Returnal launched as April’s eighth-bestselling game. Hardware sales for the month fell 30% when compared to April of last year, but year to date, hardware sales for 2021 climbed 42% compared to the first four months of 2020.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Joseph Yaden
Joseph Yaden
Joseph Yaden is a freelance journalist who covers Nintendo, shooters, and horror games. He mostly covers game guides for…
3 great Xbox Game Pass titles you should try this weekend (April 26-28)
The current gen version of Fallout 4.

This has been a pretty busy week for new releases, with the likes of Another Crab’s Treasure, Stellar Blade, Sand Land, and more coming out. Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft’s video game subscription service, has also had quite a busy week. Three games in particular stand out as must-plays this weekend for those who want to delve a bit further into the service rather than spend money on a new game.

One is an excellent single-player Star Wars game from 2023 that you might have missed because of how busy last year was for big releases. Another is a new real-time strategy game that earned buzz on Steam in the lead-up to its release. Finally, there’s a Bethesda Game Studios classic that just received an Xbox Series X update that you can experience free of charge via Game Pass. If you're looking for a new game to start this weekend, but don't feel like buying something new, give any of these a try.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor

Read more
April’s most anticipated RPG is coming to Xbox Game Pass
Key art for Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes.

We've learned about the titles that will come to Xbox Game Pass throughout the back half of April, and several of them are games getting added to the catalog the day they launch. Of those, the most notable is Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes.

While that name is a mouthful, RPG fans will want to pay attention to Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes as it is a spiritual successor to the long-dormant Konami RPG series Suikoden. Many of the developers who worked on the original Suikoden games worked together to reimagine the concept for the modern era, creating an RPG with over 100 recruitable party members, engaging combat, and a gorgeous pixelated art style that gives Square Enix's HD-2D games a run for their money. Prequel game Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising is already on Xbox Game Pass too, so Microsoft seems all-in on backing this Suikoden successor as we wait for Konami to release remasters of those titles or a new game in the series.

Read more
A PlayStation game is March’s biggest Xbox Game Pass addition
A woman plays baseball in MLB The Show 24.

Microsoft revealed on on Xbox Wire all of the Xbox Game Pass catalog additions we can expect between today and March 19. Headliners include Control Ultimate Edition, the complete version of the game Remedy Entertainment made before Alan Wake 2, and MLB The Show 24, a game made by a PlayStation-owned studio.

MLB The Show 24 will be available from day one on Xbox Game Pass starting on March 19. It is the latest in Sony San Diego Studio's long-running baseball simulation franchise. Previously a PlayStation-exclusive, Major League Baseball made Sony take the series multiplatform in 2021. Since then, it has come to platforms like Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch and has been an annual addition to Xbox Game Pass. MLB The Show 24 continues to refine the sports simulation gameplay while also featuring Storylines about The Negro Leagues and Derek Jeter. It also lets players be a woman in the Road to the Show mode for the first time.

Read more