While much of the Operation Sports community has been looking forward to reveals when it comes to Franchise mode in MLB The Show 25, the time has come for San Diego Studio to reveal the changes arriving to its bread and butter: Diamond Dynasty. For anyone not quite familiar with Diamond Dynasty, it is MLB The Show‘s long-running card-collecting/Ultimate Team-like mode, and its most popular feature.
SDS has released a Fielding Feedback video addressing what’s new in Diamond Dynasty this year. So let’s break it all down.
What’s New In MLB The Show 25 Diamond Dynasty Mode?
Yearlong Progression
This isn’t exactly a new update as this has been known since the game was initially announced, but MLB The Show 25 will be ditching Sets & Seasons this year in favor of the more traditional yearlong progression system. For the past few MLB The Show titles, Diamond Dynasty players have been limited to using cards on a per-season basis. But this year, SDS will be allowing you to play with your cards throughout the year with no such restrictions.
This is an incredibly welcome change as it makes the grind for each card worth it now. For the past few years, grinding out Team Affinity or various other Programs for good cards or packs has made it incredibly hard to get cards in a timely manner and actually be able to enjoy them for a prolonged period of time. Now, players will be able to unlock these cards without having some clock being attached to their eligibility. There is also the promise of there being a more progressive power creep.
This serves to make Live Series cards viable again. With Sets & Seasons no longer being a thing, SDS will likely release fewer special cards, making those high gold and diamond pack pulls all the more worth it.
Diamond Quest
Another feature new to Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show 25 is Diamond Quest, a rogue-like mode. The mode seems to be a new take on Conquest from past titles, only with a different twist. In it, players will attempt to fill a game board whilst also participating in Moments, Bosses, and 3-inning games. Making big plays in these playable moments will also earn you an in-game currency called Peanuts that you can spend on perks.
Secret rewards will also be present on the board. And playing on a higher difficulty will allow players to unlock high-rated cards and even better rewards. Overall, it seems fun. But really, it’s just a Conquest mode that’s been made slightly different. I’ll probably play it when grinding or when it’s absolutely necessary for a big reward, but not really bother with it outside of that.
Weekend Classic
Arguably the highest anticipated arrival to Diamond Dynasty this year is Weekend Classic. Similar to Champions in EA FC, Weekend Classic will be a highly competitive mode where the best players will face each other directly in an effort to unlock the best rewards in the game. Unlike EA FC‘s Champions, though, Weekend Classic will only run once at the tail end of a Ranked Season.
Similar to how Events work, players are rewarded for going on a win streak. As it’s described in the video, players who go 6-0 to start will “be given” guaranteed top-tier rewards. But further goodies can be acquired should you choose to play and, of course, win more games en route to climbing the world rankings. It isn’t known whether or not there will be a limit to how many games you can play in Weekend Classic.
Team Affinity
While Team Affinity has been a mainstay in Diamond Dynasty, it will be receiving changes in MLB The Show 25. As opposed to Team Affinity being divided into divisions this year, each team will have its own rewards to unlock. This should prove extremely useful to those looking to build theme teams based on their favorite ballclub or Captain boost.
Team Affinity will be given live drops throughout the year, implying that the path will always be the same and won’t lock out any players who get a late start on Team Affinity. This is also a welcome change, and is certainly another benefit of Sets & Seasons being a thing of the past.
Multiplayer Program
As opposed to years past where SDS has made individual Programs for individual modes, MLB The Show 25 will be combining all multiplayer modes into one program. At least, that’s how it’s been presented.
If I’m understanding everything correctly, this means that everything will be sorted into one reward path. And whatever you do in any of the multiplayer game modes will count towards that path. And honestly, this is a welcome change. In past titles, grinding through each individual program has been an absolute pain. And being able to contribute towards one program no matter what mode I am playing makes unlocking rewards way easier. That is unless SDS has decided to make the program longer than usual, in which case, the grind will still be rough.
Spotlight & My Legacy Programs
As in previous years, player and themed programs will be returning in MLB The Show 25. Only this time, things will be a bit different. New this year will be Spotlight programs, a new spin on weekly and season rewards — kind of like Topps Now and programs of that nature. Spotlight programs will be dropped on both a weekly and monthly basis and celebrates the best players at that time in real life.
My Legacy programs seem to be a bit different. Rather than giving players cards to compete with, they seem geared towards accolades such as reach a certain amount of doubles or home runs within Diamond Dynasty. I’m not big on cosmetic rewards at all really. But, I’m sure some players will enjoy flexing on 1000 home runs or something like that.
New Presentation Packages
Shown as a kind of Easter egg of sorts, it was also revealed that Diamond Dynasty will be receiving a few new presentation packages based on whatever mode you’re playing. While this certainly isn’t a groundbreaking feature or anything like that, a decent presentation based on the mode you’re in can provide some stakes to the mode.
So long as I don’t have to hear about Francisco Lindor’s penchant for cologne 800 times a day, I’m all for it.
