6 Things to Do Day 1 in Diamond Dynasty in MLB The Show 25

Launch night is nearly here.

For MLB The Show veterans and new players alike, it is one of the best nights of each game's life cycle. Little compares to the feeling of that first diamond pull of a fresh Diamond Dynasty experience, or that first team build with newly acquired players.

The sheer number of options when a player logs into Diamond Dynasty can be overwhelming. There is often a light tutorial to guide the player through some of the basics, but what should be your first moves after that? Here are six ideas to optimize your early-game experience and get you on the fast track to competing online and offline, while knocking out collections, too.

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REDEEM YOUR PACKS

Whether you play online or offline, you want every player card in your inventory available to you when you round out that first lineup. There might be some welcome rewards and other scattered standard Show packs in your inventory from the outset, but those might not be everything.

If you pre-ordered either the digital or digital deluxe versions of the game, your account will have been credited with additional packs to redeem. Those are often found in a PlayStation menu off the main pack store. Look for a prompt for that menu in the pack store, then click on any free items in the PlayStation Store marked "Redeem." These are your pre-order bonuses. 

Also, if you have been watching the Feature Premiere streams on the San Diego Studios Twitch channel in the leadup to the game's release, you should have Twitch drop packs to redeem as well. If these do not show up in your inventory right away, check on theshow.com to confirm your accounts on Twitch and whatever platform you use to play MLB The Show are linked.

Also through the site, you can submit a ticket if you are missing any of your pre-order bonuses. Do that ASAP to ensure they can be sent to your account in a timely manner.

Once all of those packs have been redeemed, enjoy your first pack opening of MLB The Show 25.

ADJUST YOUR SETTING OFFLINE

The last thing you want when playing that first competitive game online is to have a plate coverage indicator (PCI) or camera angles that make it harder for you to execute swings or pitches as well as you would like. Take a few minutes to hop into a game of "Play vs. CPU" in Diamond Dynasty to tweak your settings and see the results in real time. Pause menu times have been shortened in MLB The Show 25, so making sure you have the ideal setup for your play style is critical to have sorted out on the front end.

COMPLETE STARTER COLLECTIONS

The tutorial will likely cover this as it has in recent years, but Diamond Dynasty has historically included "Starter Collections" to introduce the concept of collecting cards to the player. The tutorial usually introduces these before the player has opened all of their packs, so revisiting them after filling up your inventory with all those cards is a good idea.

These collections often reward a small sum of packs, XP and/or stubs, which can provide a boost as you look for that edge to get closer to better rewards in the programs scattered throughout the game.

Remember that cards locked in to collections are then designated as "No Sell," meaning they cannot be placed up for sale in the community market or quick sold. Choose the lowest overall cards that fit the collection to avoid locking in cards of potentially higher value that you might want to sell.

CHECK OUT PROGRAMS

A staple of the Diamond Dynasty experience over the last number of years has been what are called "Programs." These structured reward paths often feature challenges to perform with specific players in games or moments that put you into the action to complete a specific task or occasionally collections that allow you to advance toward the final reward.

Before setting your lineup and hopping into a game, check to see if any lineup adjustments can be made based on the requirements of these Programs. If you are like me and have the memory of a goldfish, having a notebook or your phone's Notes app handy to record some reminders as you set your lineup can be helpful.

Completing Programs is often the quickest path to the best free cards in the game, so having their requirements in mind when you set your lineup is always a good idea.

SET A FEW LINEUPS

So, if you have been following these in order, you should have all of your free cards and an idea of the Programs you want to attack either online or offline. You now have the tools at your disposal and an idea of how you want to approach your launch night experience. Over the last couple years, MLB The Show has allowed a user to create four unique lineups. I recommend using two or three of these right off the bat before looking for a game:

1. Ranked lineup — This is your lineup for Ranked. It should feature the best cards (or the cards you do best with) available to you at every position. You might find you do not have a serviceable player at a given position. This is fine, especially early in the power creep, and gives you an idea of players to look for on the market or as you complete Programs. You might not want to start your Diamond Dynasty journey online without a complete Ranked lineup, but at least putting together a rough one with the players you have will give you an idea of how far away you are from a lineup you can take online.

2. Offline "Grind" lineup — This lineup is purely for advancing through Programs or other offline modes you want to prioritize. If you need extra-base hits with Yankees to complete a Program, for instance, load your lineup up with as many Yankees as you can — even if they're low overall. You will use this lineup for modes like Conquest, Diamond Quest and Play vs. CPU to grind for better rewards.

3. Themed lineup — This one is optional and perhaps just for fun, but put together a theme team of either players from your favorite team or players that fit a specific Captain boost. This can be a versatile lineup for offline or online use, depending on how the attributes stack up.

EDIT UNIFORMS

This one is optional, and by now you are probably frustrated to not have gotten into a game yet if you have followed in order, but nevertheless, if you bypassed any portion of the tutorial that directed you to edit your team's uniforms, taking a crack at them before you get too engrossed in the game modes available in Diamond Dynasty is a worthwhile idea.

Whether you go through all the home and away uniform menus and craft every stitch to your liking, or simply choose one of the professional or Minor League Baseball uniforms in your inventory, it does not hurt to add a personal touch to your squad.

Those first memories of a Perfect-Perfect home run or strikeout to end a game will be that much sweeter with your players wearing something other than generic colors the game provides you.

Beyond these six tips, the beauty of Diamond Dynasty is it is a journey to approach at one's own pace on their unique path. May the pack gods shine upon you, and enjoy assembling your best possible squad in the days and weeks to come.