A Thinker in Space

It’s rare that I’m able to jump a trend before it hits like wildfire. Well, it feels rare, but I actually had the good fortune to dive into Minecraft in Alpha (maybe I’ll write a little something about Minecraft to the future). But Balatro I played only three days after its release date.

This game is fun. Not only that, but it is already a strong contender for 2024’s Indie GOTY winner.

I have a favorite games of all time list (which would be fun to write an article about at some point), and it takes a lot for a game to skyrocket into top 20 or even top 10. This game has a chance to do so, because it does so much so well.

The premise of Balatro is deceptively simple. In fact, it draws an instant comparison to Slay the Spire, a fantastic deckbuilder roguelike that has earned its well-deserved fair share of accolades.

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While Slay the Spire is all about creating a deck to fight monsters, Balatro comes at the deckbuilding roguelike genre from a different angle.

First and foremost, there are two key terms I’ve been using that are important to understand.

Deckbuilder: a game where your goal as the player is to build a deck of cards. First seen in board games, deckbuilders are all about buying cards to add to your deck and then shuffling them in and using them to buy more cards. It is one of my favorite personal formats of board games, and it was popularized by the game Dominion, one of the most classic deckbuilders of all time.

Though I most often have played DC Deckbuilder – one of my favorite games of all time (which I will hopefully review at some point as well!).

Roguelike: a game where gameplay takes place in “runs”, where you start from the beginning and climb through the game until you lose, and have to restart from the beginning. However, as you do this, you unlock new things you can use in your run. Some of the most popular roguelikes are the aforementioned Slay the Spire, Dead Cells, and Hades, the winner of 2021’s Game of the Year award.

Balatro is a combination of these two mechanics – you play run-by-run, unlocking new things as you go, and getting better at the game. The deck you are building, however, is unique and unexpected – you are handed a normal deck of 52 playing cards. You are then dealt a hand of cards, and have to play poker hands in order to score points (aptly called “chips”). Higher scoring hands score more chips. Higher scoring cards score more chips. Each hand is scored with a chip number and a multiplier (for example, Flush is 35 x 4) But as the game goes on, you realize it is a bit more complicated than that.

What Does a Run Look Like?

A run of Balatro has the player face off against “Blinds”, aptly named from the poker aesthetic of the game. There are three blinds each “ante” or floor, and you must do them in order. Each Blind requires you to get a certain number of chips (the first ante has a 300 Blind, a 450 Blind, and then a 600 Boss Blind). The Boss Blind has an effect that creates a disadvantage for the player, and there is one boss per ante.

In order to beat your run on the standard difficulty, you need to get through 8 antes, each of them more difficult than the last. You have the ability to skip the two antes before the boss for a bonus, but this denies you access to the shop (where you permanently improve your deck/run) and should be a choice that is calculated based on the current state of your deck and the Boss Blind’s ability.

After you finish the 8th Ante, there is a satisfying “endless” mode, where you can keep playing until you get destroyed by a massive blind or difficult boss.

Throughout the game, your deck is equipped with upgrades to make you more successful against the more challenging blinds. There are five types of cards you can use to modify your run. Each one changes or improves your run in a different way.

Jokers

The game revolves around a deck of Jokers (which you unlock as you play). You can buy five of these throughout each run (though there are times where you can end up with 6+), and they improve/change the game in some way. A Joker doesn’t go into your deck, it stays on the outside and has a passive or active effect. They can increase the chips you receive for a hand, increase (or multiply) your multiplier, or do a variety of other things. A run is often made or broken by what jokers you buy, and as you make changes for your deck you should always keep in mind what jokers you have committed to.

Tarots

The deck of Tarot cards (the game does not lean into the spiritual aspect of them, simply has them as a component) can alter and change your deck. Some transform three cards into another suit, some allow you to transform one card into another, some allow you to remove cards, some make the cards in your deck stronger, and some do other things entirely! These are sometimes available to purchase in the store in between hands, though there are ways to get them through jokers and other card enhancements!

Planet

These cards improve the quality of hand scoring, increasing the base chip x multiplier. Each planet represents a different hand!

Spectral

These are incredibly powerful cards that are more rare to find and often come with a sort of drawback. They can completely change/shape a run, and can do a multitude of different things from transforming all of the cards in your hand into the same number or suit to giving you a “rare” joker and blowing up the rest.

Standard

These are the basic 52 cards in the deck. Throughout the game, you can add cards to your deck, often with enhancements that can make your run even better!

Other Things That Can Help You Win!

Card Improvements

As mentioned before, standard cards can be improved to make them better/more profitable. There are three different categories of improvements, and each individual card can have one of each of these. The type of improvement is enhancement. These usually give you either a bonus when the card is scored or when it is kept in your hand, and vary from giving you more gold to spend in the shop, increasing the chip value of the card, or increasing your multiplier.

The second enhancement category is the seal. Each card can have one seal, and these also give you a bonus depending on what the seal’s condition is (play and score, discard, or keep in hand at the end of the round). These usually have a long-term impact on your run instead of being limited to just the hand (the four include: giving you a tarot, planet card, or gold, or re-triggering the card one time).

The third is editions. This is the only card improvement that can be attached to both standard cards and jokers, and it gives the card a base increase in value (either it scores more chips or the multiplier is increased when the card scores). This includes foil (+50 chips, polychrome (x1.5 multiplier), holographic (+10 multiplier) and negative (+1 Joker Slot).

Getting some solid improved cards in your deck is incredibly useful for succeeding in beating your run!

Vouchers

Vouchers are passives that you can purchase for $10 in the store, and they can have a massive impact on your gameplay. They do a variety of different things, from helping you get loads more money to changing the rules about hands and discards.

The Shop

You can purchase these five cards and other bonuses from the shop, which shows up at the end of every round. You receive gold through multiple ways, but the two that you start with are gold dropped by each blind when you beat them, and interest (one gold for every five in your bank, capped at 5, received at the end of every hand). The shop is where you spend this hard-earned cash for the aforementioned content, improving your deck and your run. After every hand, there are two cards available in the shop that could be Jokers, Planets, or Tarots. There are also two packs (they knew what they were doing with the gambling system) that allow you to pick either 1 from 3, 1 from 5, or 2 from 5 of Tarots, Jokers, Planets, Spectral or Standard cards (the packs will be labeled with the card type).

The shop also has a single voucher, which, unlike the rest, does not reset until after you’ve beaten the current ante’s Boss Blind.

Overall Review

Balatro strikes an incredibly strong balance of satisfying gameplay and challenge that keeps me coming back for more. While it suffers from the feeling of loss that comes with losing a really good roguelike run, I try and remind myself that as a person who loves board games – every game is different, and every game ends. Balatro is a masterclass in game design that the developer has dedicated to updating (hopefully allowing for more Jokers/other content additions in the future) as we have seen with the balance update released in the past few weeks for PC (still waiting for it on consoles!). I’m hoping that this game goes the way of Vampire Survivor (another incredibly indie roguelike that strikes a similar addicting and fun balance of gameplay) and continues to add DLC/content for years to come!

If you haven’t played this game yet, it is 110% worth your time and money, and I highly recommend giving it a shot (though you might want to wait for the mobile release later this year!). It is inexpensive but worth more than most AAA games currently releasing, and is sure to bring countless hours of entertainment if you enjoy this style of game!

(Underrated Games #3)

Recommended for Younger Players

Balatro, while very, very good, is also incredibly addicting. Though kids would be strategizing and learning as they play, it also wants you to feel that “just one more game” dopamine hit that makes it so much fun. There are also Tarot cards thrown into the mix that families might want to avoid, as well as other astrological imagery. At middle school age, Balatro is much more applicable, as it is a good game that doesn’t have the awful content many others do.

Verdict: No

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