When one thinks of Game of the Year nominees, one usually thinks of wide, sweeping RPGs or dark narratives that stick with you long after playing; some games even combine both of those clichés. You probably don’t think of an addictive game with scoring based around poker hands that has absolutely no story to speak of–and yet, sticking out like a sore thumb, this game was exactly what appeared in the lineup of Game of the Year nominees at the Game Awards this year. Despite the fact that it didn’t win, my interest was still piqued and I knew I had to check it out.
Balatro is an indie game created by developer LocalThunk, and while it didn’t win Game of the Year, it still won Best Indie Game and a few other awards. It’s a roguelike, which in simplest terms means that failure is inevitable and encouraged: With each “run,” you get better and better at understanding the game until you can finally beat it.
Balatro’s gameplay is based on two things: Poker hands and Jokers. Each poker hand is worth a certain amount of Chips, which is multiplied together with the “Mult” gained from your Jokers. If you meet the amount required to complete the Blind you’re currently on, you win the round and can use the cash you earn to buy additional resources from the Shop. There, you can buy more Jokers and open card packs that can upgrade your deck in various ways. After three Blinds, the final of which is always a Boss with some sort of twist attached, the Ante is upped and the totals you need to reach get higher.
Despite the simple-sounding gameplay, there’s a surprising amount of variety in it. There are 150 Jokers, each of which has a variety of effects: Some do something as simple as boost your “Mult” when you play cards of a certain suit, while others are more complicated (Ride the Bus, for example, removes any Mult it has gained over time if you play a Jack, Queen or King). Certain other effects, whether from Jokers or a card pack, also rely on probability and may not always activate when you need them most. You can also completely manipulate your deck, giving you more than one Ace of a suit or gradually changing your deck to be mostly Spades, just to name a few examples. Some of the twists the Boss Blinds have are absolutely devious, as well: One may completely remove your ability to discard, while another may half the total of any hand you play outright. All of this is part and parcel of roguelikes, which also include games like Hades and Slay the Spire; if you go into this game expecting to beat it within a few hours, be prepared to be very disappointed. The appeal comes from playing it over and over again.
As someone who drifts far more towards Blackjack than Poker on the average trip to the casino, I was unsure about how bad I would be at the game and stayed away from it for a while. When I found out from some friends that the only connection to Poker is the usage of the different hands, I didn’t hesitate any longer. Speaking from personal experience, the game is incredibly addictive, much like a real casino game, although thankfully the only money spent is virtual in the Shops.
Don’t get discouraged if you aren’t constantly breaking the game, as many popular YouTube videos have done, and instead allow yourself to experiment with all of the various combinations you can create. As a new player to the game, I’d recommend the Supernova and Odd Todd/Even Stevens Jokers to start. The former gives you more “Mult” the more times you play the same hand, while the latter two give “Mult” to odd and even cards, respectively.
Balatro is available on all major consoles, as well as Steam and Apple and Android devices.
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