I got Balatro a month ago and already have spent 24 hours on the game. That should give a good idea of just how addictive it is.
Balatro has cemented itself in a space for me that previously only games like Minecraft and ULTRAKILL occupied. That space of near-addiction because of how fantastic their gameplay is. Balatro, like ULTRAKILL, is a complicated game. But unlike ULTRAKILL, you can gather that from the moment you open your first game.
Balatro is described as a poker-themed roguelike deck-builder. You aim to reach a certain amount of chips in a certain amount of hands, a “blind.” You earn these chips by playing poker hands, each of which gives a certain amount of chips and “mult.” Each type of hand has a set amount of chips and mult, and each card in your hand adds chips equal to its play value. For instance, a king gives ten chips, and a seven card gives seven chips.
There are three blinds in an ante, or round; a small blind, a big blind, and a boss blind. The boss blind has a special effect, ranging from disabling spade cards to removing money for each card played.
Every time you complete a blind, you earn a certain base amount of money on top of extra money per unused hand. In between blinds, you are granted access to a shop, where you can buy special cards.
And this is where Balatro truly begins.
In the shop, you can buy all sorts of things. You can get jokers, vouchers, spectral cards, tarot cards, planet cards, and normal cards. These all come in packs, except for the two jokers or tarot cards at the top of the shop. Every shop has at least two packs to choose from, including all mentioned above except vouchers. Vouchers change every ante and give abilities like an extra discard, or doubling money.
Planet cards add more mult and chips to a specific type of hand. However, there are some secret cards that level up hands that are normally impossible. Hands like flush fives, five-of-a-kind, and flush house. There is also a Black Hole planet card that levels up every single hand type.
Tarot cards have a huge variety of abilities, from being able to buff your cards to duplicating them. You can make them give more chips, give mult, multiply your mult, and even give you money. These are the keys to being able to play those illegal five hands mentioned above.
Spectral cards are like stronger tarot cards. They can add enhanced cards to your deck, convert all cards in your current hand to one rank or suit, add seals that give you tarot cards or planet cards, and even give you special jokers. If you ever see one in the shop, it’s a good idea to get it.
Finally, the jokers. These are the keys to any Balatro run. They can start simple, giving extra chips or mult depending on the hand played. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. There is one called the Joker Stencil which gives an extra x1 mult for each empty Joker slot.
To balance the jokers out, there are normally only 5 slots. There’s one joker called the Gros Michel, which gives +15 mult and has a 1 in 6 chance of being destroyed each round. But, once it is destroyed, you have a chance of getting the Cavendish in the shop, which gives x3 mult.
And this is still such a shallow look at the game. Combining these jokers can provide wild results. For instance, I had a run with Scary Face (Played face cards give +30 chips when scored), Smiley Face (Played face cards give +5 mult when scored), Hanging Chad (retrigger first scored card 2 times), and Sock and Buskin (retrigger all played face cards). So, when I played a Full House with Kings and Queens, I would score 26,400 chips in a single hand. And this is without any buffed cards or times mult. Do you understand just how fast things get out of hand?
I haven’t even mentioned editions yet. Every time you get a card in a standard pack or a joker, there is a chance for it to be either foil, holographic, polychrome, or negative (for jokers only). Foil jokers give +50 chips when the joker is used, holographic gives +10 mult, polychrome gives x1.5 mult, and negative adds an extra joker slot. While the first three won’t typically make or break a run, negative jokers can be absolutely amazing if you get it on the right one.
After the shop, you get the option to skip blinds, which will guarantee you certain things. Whether it’s a guaranteed free edition in the next shop, upgrading a hand type by 3 levels, or granting a card pack, they can be incredibly useful when used correctly. However, it can be dangerous if your jokers aren’t strong enough to carry you through the next blind. It is important to mention boss blinds cannot be skipped.
The game also provides with you various decks, that can be unlocked by completing certain requirements. They each have a unique effect to them, like increasing your hand size or starting with $10. But they can get far more complicated. There’s one that starts you off with three different vouchers. Different decks can work well with certain jokers, so there’s a level of strategy when you’re picking what deck to play.
Finally, there are challenges. A fairly niche feature, challenges impose various restrictions and rules upon the player. I haven’t interacted with them yet, but from the ones I have unlocked, I can tell they are brutal. The very first one is called the Omelet, where you’re given 5 jokers that gain more sell value the longer you have them. But, you earn no money from any other source.
I haven’t even mentioned the card customization options! Balatro is an incredibly deep, addictive, and complicated game. I’m not surprised that on the first day of its mobile release, it beat out Stardew Valley and Minecraft for concurrent players on both the Apple Store and Google Play Store. Currently, the game has 4,500 reviews and an overall 5 stars.
This is likely going to be my game of the year. Never before has a game so swiftly made me so addicted to it. The increasingly complicated gameplay loop always feels fresh with each run. And the music and interface never feel stale no matter how many times I see or hear them. It is well worth the price tag of $10, and I’d definitely be willing to pay more. I highly recommend this game. It is available on nearly every platform, with prices varying based on which one.
