TITLE
The Designer of 2024’s Hit, Balatro, Isn’t Sweating Kids Playing His Poker Game
AUTHOR
Patrick Klepek
PUBLICATION
Crossplay
YEAR
2024
ARTICLE TYPE
Interview
FROM THE ARTICLE
The first time I played Balatro, my then-seven-year-old daughter glanced at my Steam Deck with a puzzled look. The colors were dazzling. The way the cards danced across the screen was enticing. We’ve played a handful of card games in the house—Go Fish and the like, nothing too intense—but Balatro, a delightful mashup of poker with roguelike mechanics, came across like a virtual fireworks show by comparison.[…]
Balatro involves players making moment-to-moment risk calculations in service of scoring big, but the “bets”—i.e. trying to build a deck of cards that will let them continue playing the game—players are making ultimately translates into points, not money. And yet, Balatro also leverages casino aesthetics to a great degree—just read the way this one player, a longtime addict, wasn’t sure if they could play the game. (They could.) It’s what drew my daughter’s eye towards my Steam Deck this year.
[…]
The game’s developer, who goes by the name LocalThunk online, actually wrote into his will that Balatro, which presumably has made LocalThunk lots of money at this point, can never be sold or licensed to a gambling or casino company. Despite this, the game was, however, briefly removed from various online storefronts over a ratings dispute, before later returning with a disclaimer that it has “gambling themes.”
I recently had a chance to ask LocalThunk a few questions about Balatro’s explosive popularity, his experience with card games growing up, and what he thought about my daughter looking over my shoulder and asking questions about his game.
GAMES MENTIONED
Balatro
PEOPLE MENTIONED
LocalThunk