Balatro Reviews

Balatro is ranked in the 100th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
90 / 100
Feb 19, 2024

While the idea of a poker roguelike might sound like a niche game, the flair and fun found within Balatro makes it an absolute must-play for fans of the genre. Breaking the rules of poker to score millions of chips in a single hand was a rush, and I was always chasing ways to push it even further beyond. While there are a few times you can feel snubbed by the luck of the draw, these are wildly overshadowed by the moments where you hit it big.

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9.5 / 10.0
Mar 17, 2024

Balatro is one of those deceptively-approachable ideas that will absolutely consume you the more you start to puzzle out its secrets and intricacies. It somehow makes playing the same game over and over feel completely fresh in possibility each time, and doles out just enough new ideas and just the right amount of intoxicating feedback to keep you thinking "one more game" well into the AM.

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9.5 / 10.0
Feb 25, 2024

Balatro from developer LocalThunk is a marvel of a poker experience. While its base-level design is poker, the game’s complicated layers of beautiful strategic ridiculousness driven by upgrades, buffs, and jokers make for a unique experience that is both stimulating and challenging.

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Ian Howarth
Top Critic
8 / 10
Mar 10, 2024

Though I have no doubt anybody who likes cards, poker, video games, or joy will have a great time with it, I feel I should also note that it does wear itself out significantly faster than most of its brethren.

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GameSpew
Top Critic
9 / 10.0
Feb 19, 2024

No two games of Balatro are ever the same, which is only one of the reasons why we love this poker roguelike so much. Sure, it’s annoying if your run doesn’t get off the ground — it’s easy to fail early on if you can’t get your hands on a good Joker. But when you’re in the swing of things, scoring tens of thousands with just one hand, you’ll feel like the most powerful card baron there ever was. Simple and devious, Balatro is, quite frankly, brilliant — and I’m going to be playing this for months to come.

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Niche Gamer
Augusto A.
Top Critic
9 / 10.0
Jan 3, 2025

A game that consistently feeds players with such raw dopamine hasn’t come along since Vampire Survivors initially released, and it shows that indie developers can turn anything into a fun roguelike experience. If you are still in the fence about it, give Balatro a try, you won’t regret it.

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9 / 10.0
Jul 1, 2024

Balatro is excellent all around. The concept is simple, and while the various card types seem overly complicated, the game remains easy to understand no matter how many rules there are. It's utterly enjoyable to the point where you'll keep coming back no matter how many times you lose to a boss with a ridiculous modifier. For anyone who likes card games, Balatro is a must-have.

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8 / 10.0
Feb 23, 2024

Balatro is fast and addictive, a game that takes familiar ideas and adds enough twists and turns to keep players engaged. Take a look at the Collection to see how many potential jokers, booster packs, tags, and more can influence a run. Each run generates a sense of excitement and possibility, even if it ends quickly after a run of bad card draws.

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9 / 10.0
Mar 14, 2024

Balatro is one of the best examples of the growing number of deck building games in recent years. With the freedom it offers, the joy of new strategies and much more, it's a royal flush.

Review in Turkish | Read full review

10 / 10.0
Mar 2, 2024

A wonderful roguelike card game which twists poker rules in unexpected ways. It would seem that after Slay the Spire this genre won't be able to surprise in any way, but cool ideas from independent developers continue to appear.

Review in Russian | Read full review

95 / 100
Feb 26, 2024

Balatro is a true phenomenon. Simple in its execution, but giant in its complexity.

Review in Portuguese | Read full review

9 / 10
Feb 21, 2024

Balatro is an incredibly clever indie gem that uses the bones of regular poker to build an incredibly approachable and fiendishly addictive new experience. There's a wonderfully slick core to this one, building decks and taking on dealers as you add wild special cards and variables to your pack is trance-inducing stuff and, backed by a fantastically understated soundtrack and perfect visuals, it makes for one of the first proper, actual, absolute must-play games of 2024.

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9 / 10.0
Feb 19, 2024

Now, please, let me play my Balatro in peace. I got an idea for a sick flush strat that I want to try out. So I'll y'all later.

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Feb 27, 2024

It's impressive how long Balatro's simple gameplay can keep you entertained so be sure to play it if you enjoy a good ol' game of poker.

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98 / 100
Feb 21, 2024

Balatro deals a winning hand with its innovative twist on an age-old formula. It breaks the rules of poker in many fun yet unfair ways, with playthroughs that are as varied as a shuffled deck. It’s a title I can see myself sinking hundreds of hours into and if other 2024 titles hope to have a shot at Game Of The Year, they better up the ante!

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10 / 10
Mar 26, 2024

Quite frankly, it’s a miracle I’ve even managed to finish writing this review, my past week or so dominated by Balatro. When I’ve been playing it, I’m absolutely absorbed in its clever and satisfying gameplay. When I’m not playing it, I’m thinking about my next run. When I’m with friends, I’m excited to talk about Balatro and their winning combinations of Jokers. Put simply, Balatro is an incredible experience and one of the best (if not the best) game 2024 has seen so far.

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9 / 10.0
Dec 20, 2024

Balatro’s genius is exposed when you take the simple individual components of a run and combine them in the perfect mixture to create something far greater than the sum of its parts. And then you start trying to see how far you can push it, or what other combinations can help you reach e-notation. And then you’re there. You’re a Balatro fan.

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9 / 10.0
Nov 23, 2024

Balatro stands out from other popular games today due to its accessibility and the convenience it offers for enjoyment anytime and anywhere—whether during a long journey, a work break, or simply for someone seeking to pass the time. With simple rules and a gameplay system that is both deep and engaging, Balatro seamlessly transitioned from a casual experience we tried out of curiosity to a captivating game that absorbed hours of our attention. Its availability on mobile devices further enhances its appeal, solidifying it as one of the most entertaining experiences in its category.

Review in Arabic | Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Nov 30, 2024

Balatro is a surprisingly delightful experience, proving that neither a massive budget nor breathtaking graphics are necessary to compete with the AAA giants of the gaming industry. This is a very simple title that relies entirely on its gameplay loop, yet its simplicity manages to captivate in a way that few other games on the market can.

Review in Italian | Read full review

Yes
Dec 20, 2024

Balatro takes a simple concept that pretty much anyone could grasp, and feeds you with meaningful decision points at every turn. Which blinds to play and which to skip? What Jokers to buy? How should you modify your deck? And how much of a risk should you take when actually playing your hands? It’s a fantastically fun degree of agency to have in an otherwise simple card game.

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