Balatro

Balatro is a poker-themed roguelike deck-building game developed by solo developer LocalThunk, and published by Playstack, rated PEGI 3 as of 2026. It was released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on February 20, 2024, with a port to macOS on March 1. Ports for Android and iOS were released on September 26, 2024. A dedicated Nintendo Switch 2 version was released on February 25, 2026. In the game, the player must score points by playing poker hands from a starting 52-card deck, with a limited number of hands and discards each round.

Game data

Released: 2024-02-20
User rating: 4.28 / 5
Genres: Casual, Strategy, Indie
Platforms: PC, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, iOS

via RAWG

Key facts

Video game.title: Balatro
Video game.image: Balatro cover.jpg
Video game.alt: Balatro's Steam cover image
Video game.developer: LocalThunk
Video game.publisher: Playstack
Video game.engine: Löve
Video game.composer: Luis Clemente (LouisF)

~23 min read

Article

19 sections

Contents

Gameplay
Playthrough
Blinds
Antes and rounds
End of a run
Cards
Consumables
Decks
Modding
Development
Etymology
Release
Appearances in other games
Reception
Sales
Accolades
Notes
References
External links

The game was developed over a two-and-a-half year period by LocalThunk, inspired by the card game Big Two and the roguelike video game Luck Be a Landlord. Initially, LocalThunk treated Balatro as a side project to put on a résumé, not anticipating the success of the game.