Balatro

Poker-inspired roguelike deckbuilder built around scoring synergies and escalating blinds

LocalThunk · Published by Playstack · Released Feb 20, 2024

Reviews: Overwhelmingly Positive; 98% of 199K
Recent reviews: Overwhelmingly Positive; 97% of 1,447 in 30 days
Playing now: 5,322; peak 24h 7,385
Steam Deck: Verified
Last update: 1 year ago; Oct 24, 2024

What is Balatro?

A single-player roguelike deckbuilder where you play poker hands to score chips and defeat increasingly difficult blinds. During each run, you combine Jokers, card upgrades, and other modifiers to create scoring strategies and reach the final ante.

For you if...

+you enjoy repeatable runs built around card synergies
+you like experimenting with poker hands and unusual modifiers
+you want turn-based strategy designed for solo play

Not for you if...

−you dislike runs heavily shaped by random upgrades
−you want a traditional poker simulation
−you expect higher difficulties to minimize randomness

What players say

98% of 198,835 reviews are positive · 97% of 1,447 in the last 30 days

Players praise the card synergies, replay value, music, and sound design. The most common complaint is that higher difficulties and challenge runs depend too heavily on random shops and upgrades, making some losses feel outside the player's control.

Screenshots and trailer

Balatro system requirements

As published by the developer.

Minimum

OS: Windows 7, 8, 10, 11 x64
Processor: Intel Core i3
Graphics: OpenGL 2.1 compatible graphics card, integrated graphics
Memory: 1 GB RAM
Storage: 150 MB available space

PC version details

DRM, required accounts, controller support and Steam features.

DRM: None declared on Steam
Controller: Full controller support
Platforms: Windows, macOS
Achievements: 31
Steam features: Cloud saves, Family Sharing, Trading cards

Steam Deck: Verified

All functionality is accessible with the default controller configuration
Shows Steam Deck controller icons
In-game text is legible on Steam Deck
Default graphics settings perform well on Steam Deck

Multiplayer and co-op

Single-player

Languages

Text only: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Dutch, Japanese, Polish, Portuguese - Brazil, Simplified Chinese, Spanish - Latin America, Traditional Chinese.