Casual · February 20, 2024

Balatro (2024)

Balatro (2024) scores 98% positive on Steam from 153.6k reviews, 90 Metacritic, developed by LocalThunk.

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Balatro (2024) is a Casual title from LocalThunk available on Windows, macOS. The title carries a 98% Steam positive rating across 153.6k reviews, a 90/100 Metacritic score, and 17.1k peak concurrent players — making it a measurable reference point when comparing to peers in the Casual category.

Balatro is a poker-inspired roguelike deck builder all about creating powerful synergies and winning big. Combine valid poker hands with unique Joker cards in order to create varied synergies and builds. Earn enough chips to beat devious blinds, all while uncovering hidden bonus hands and decks as you progress. You’re going to need every edge you can get in order to reach the boss blind, beat the final ante and secure victory. The definitive poker roguelike experience. Endless possibilities – every pick-up, discard and joker can dramatically alter the course of your run. In-depth campaign mode complete with 8 difficulties, as well as challenge and seeded runs. Deftly deploy an array of potent tools: different Decks, Jokers, Tarot cards, Planet cards, Spectral cards, and Vouchers. Use these versatile instruments to ignite a combo frenzy and turbocharge your poker hands, crafting electrifying, adrenaline-fueled synergies. 150 Jokers, each with their own unique abilities 15 Decks with distinct modifiers to choose from for each run 5 potential variants of each Joker which add further abilities 22 Tarot cards variants that can enhance your regular playing cards 11 Planet cards that help level up your possible poker hands 32 Voucher cards to help provide permanent buffs for your current run Immerse yourself in Balatro’s distinctive psychedelic world. Let the synthwave soundtrack wash over you – wind down, escape the daily grind and prepare to enter the ultimate roguelike flow state. Improve your collection and discover new cards and secrets with every single run. Make use of the in-depth stats screen to study your best hands, most used Jokers, and more! Immerse yourself in the CRT fuzz and enjoy detailed, hand-crafted pixel art.

Release & Availability

Release date Feb 20, 2024
Developer LocalThunk
Publisher Playstack
Base price $12.74
DLC / Add-ons 1 released
Platforms Windows, macOS
Estimated owners 1M–10M
External links Official site · Metacritic page · Support · [email protected]

Release timeline

Balatro launched on Feb 20, 2024.

Studio and publishing

The title was developed by LocalThunk and published by Playstack.

Platform support

Playable natively on Windows, macOS.

Packages & editions

  • Buy Balatro

Reception & Reviews

Steam community score

Steam users rate Balatro 98% positive across 153.6k reviews — categorised as Overwhelmingly Positive.

150.5k positive · 3.1k negative

Critic consensus (Metacritic)

Critics aggregated on Metacritic awarded a 90/100 score.

Read the critics →

Curator & community recommendations

Steam curators and players have issued 142.8k recommendations for this title.

Peak concurrent players

Peak concurrent Steam players reached 17.1k — a measurement of how active the playerbase got at launch or during a surge.

Press quotes

“This is an absolute triumph, the reason Valve should rename their handheld 'the Balatro machine” 91 – PC Gamer “Balatro is one of the best deck-building roguelikes I have ever played.” 10 – Xbox Era “Balatro is an addictively delicious, menacing creation which devours hours without mercy.” 5 Stars – ScreenRant

Gameplay Profile

Genres

  • Casual
  • Indie
  • Strategy

Community tag consensus

  • Card Game · 567
  • Roguelike Deckbuilder · 550
  • Rogue-like · 550
  • Deckbuilding · 477
  • Singleplayer · 463
  • Strategy · 427
  • Pixel Graphics · 422
  • Replay Value · 399
  • Rogue-lite · 365
  • Turn-Based · 348
  • Card Battler · 338
  • Casual · 322

Playtime profile

Community average playtime is 44 hours, with a median of 20 hours — a substantial (40–100 hours) commitment. Two-week average sits at 5 hours per active player.

Steam achievements

The title ships with 31 Steam achievements to unlock.

Languages supported

Interface / subtitles: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish – Spain, Dutch, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese – Brazil, Simplified Chinese, Spanish – Latin America, Traditional Chinese.

Frequently Asked Questions

When was Balatro released?

Balatro was released on Feb 20, 2024 by LocalThunk.

Is Balatro worth playing?

Based on 153.6k Steam reviews, Balatro holds a 98% positive rating (Overwhelmingly Positive) — suggesting the game resonates with most players who try it.

What platforms does Balatro support?

Balatro runs natively on Windows, macOS.

How much does Balatro cost?

Base price on Steam is $12.74 (before seasonal discounts).

What Metacritic score did Balatro receive?

Critics rated Balatro 90/100 on Metacritic.