Balatro

Balatro has a multitude of keywords and card types that dramatically change your hand. One such term that may be confusing is Double Tag, which is a Tag variant that has some more peculiar behaviours when interacting with other Tags. In…

As Balatro has several different decks that change the core features of a run, it’s challenging to develop a universal strategy. However, there are consistent pitfalls to avoid and good things that always matter, and we’ll focus on that.…

The best part of Balatro is that success is met with more unlocks to enhance future runs. One of these is the Plasma Deck, which sounds strange but can lead to a fantastic build with the right strategy. However, expect a lot of effort to…

Screenshot: Playstack GamesBalatro was recently in the news after some versions of the game were removed from digital stores due to a ratings kerfuffle that is still ongoing. However, that setback hasn’t stopped the popular roguelike…

Playstack, the publisher of popular roguelike deckbuilder Balatro confirmed on Twitter that the game has been temporarily removed from some digital storefronts due to a sudden rating change. Apparently, the UK rating board PEGI changed the…

Breakout hit Balatro—a poker-themed roguelike deck builder—has run into some ratings trouble that’s led to the game being suddenly removed from the Nintendo eShop in many European countries. This removal has surprised both the developer and…

Every so often, a run of Balatro, the hot new poker game with a roguelite twist, will click. The random number generator is on my side when I pull a series of buffs that perfectly align: It’s the Half Joker (+20 to the multiplier for…

I’m not a poker guy, but I am definitely a Balatro guy now. Created by an anonymous developer who goes by the pen name LocalThunk, Balatro is a deck-building roguelite that takes poker and makes it an infinitely replayable and utterly…

I realized a long time ago I was probably never going to be good at poker. It’s not that I’m bad at assessing risk; worse, I just don’t care. When I used to play casual games in-between classes in school, I’d go all-in on bad hands. I’d…

In a roguelike, the word “negative” is typically a big warning sign and means you should entirely avoid whatever it is attached to. Balatro does things a little differently, but players might still be wary of the Negative Joker effect.…