How to play MLB The Show 23 on PC

Take advantage of a workaround.

A baseball batter swings at a pitch in a field in MLB The Show 2023.
Image via Sony Interactive Entertainment

MLB The Show 23 is the latest in a long line of baseball games and a current console exclusive, but for fans who want to play on PC, there might be an alternate way to play it early.

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The newest MLB game was released on Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation in March 2023. Like every prior version of the game, dating back to 2006, the game was not initially released on PC, which caused frustration among baseball fans who do not own a console.

Luckily, MLB The Show 21 decided to break the mold finally and was given a PC release. Well, sort of. Instead of a full-fledged PC port, the game came to Windows via the cloud gaming service of Xbox Game Pass, the popular game subscription service.

MLB The Show 22 soon followed suit, and now that MLB The Show 23 has launched, you can also play the latest edition on PC via this method by following the steps below.

How to play MLB The Show 23 on PC, a guide

To play MLB The Show 23 on PC, players must sign up for an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, which includes a vast catalog of over 100 games for PC and Xbox. The Ultimate tier currently costs USD 16.99 a month.

After you have subscribed to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate:

  1. Install the Xbox Game Pass app on your PC if you don’t have it already.
  2. Launch the Xbox Game Pass app.
  3. Click the Cloud Gaming tab on the left corner of your screen.
  4. Find MLB The Show 23 in the “Most popular on cloud” section and click on it.
  5. Plug in your Xbox wireless controller or a compatible controller and click play to launch MLB The Show 23 on your PC. The game won’t launch unless you plug in a controller, unfortunately.

Related: Which Xbox Game Pass plan should you buy? All differences explained

Although this version of MLB The Show 23 for PC won’t be like playing on a console, at least you can experiment with it until EA makes a full-fledged PC port for the beloved MLB gaming franchise.

Will MLB The Show 24 be on PC?

MLB The Show 24 will most likely not be coming to PC, considering the history of the franchise and no news from the devs over at Sony San Diego about the topic. With the playability via the cloud being an option, it doesn’t seem like a priority in allocating resources. While the possibility is always there, some players have addressed concerns about the option stating that the PC players would have too much of an advantage. So, unless crossplay can be disabled, some payers wouldn’t even want the title on PC, adding even more fuel to the fire that the game will not appear on PC without significant work put in.

Author
Image of Leonardo Biazzi
Leonardo Biazzi
Staff writer and CS:GO lead. Leonardo has been passionate about games since he was a kid and graduated in Journalism in 2018. Before Leonardo joined Dot Esports in 2019, he worked for Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte. Leonardo also worked for HLTV.org between 2020 and 2021 as a senior writer, until he returned to Dot Esports and became part of the staff team.
Author
Image of Joey Carr
Joey Carr
Joey Carr is a full-time writer for multiple esports and gaming websites. He has 6+ years of experience covering esports and traditional sporting events, including DreamHack Atlanta, Call of Duty Championships 2017, and Super Bowl 53.