Global Productivity Shortage Predicted for Sept 26th
September 5, 2024 8:54 AM Subscribe
Balatro Mobile announced - But what is Balatro? A deckbuilding poker roguelite, with a blaseball-esque feel (RIV), and distinctive pixel art style. It's all fun and games until you figure out your first combo invoking scientific notation. Then it's math and fun and games.
The Nerve of Balatro For Being This Good
Can I Get Better At Balatro Without Being Weird About It? - Aftermath
The Nerve of Balatro For Being This Good
Can I Get Better At Balatro Without Being Weird About It? - Aftermath
Oh no. Oh no no no.
Can I Get Better At Balatro Without Being Weird About It?
Paging Mr. Betteridge. Mr. Betteridge to the Blue Courtesy Phone please.
posted by The Bellman at 9:16 AM on September 5
Can I Get Better At Balatro Without Being Weird About It?
Paging Mr. Betteridge. Mr. Betteridge to the Blue Courtesy Phone please.
posted by The Bellman at 9:16 AM on September 5
Hanging Chad Joker is the GOAT.
posted by May Kasahara at 9:39 AM on September 5
posted by May Kasahara at 9:39 AM on September 5
Reminds me of the old underrated Sword & Poker for iPhone.
posted by credulous at 9:43 AM on September 5
posted by credulous at 9:43 AM on September 5
waitwaitwait scientific WHAT-tation? how does this work how do I do it?
posted by slogger at 10:01 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by slogger at 10:01 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
Finally, just as my resolve to wait for the mobile port was begging to wane.
posted by ersatzsapience at 10:05 AM on September 5
posted by ersatzsapience at 10:05 AM on September 5
I cannot wait to play this on iPad. I didn't really think it would be my thing initially, but I've been so completely hooked since I started playing. Just one legendary joker left to unlock! It's also surprisingly fun to play cooperatively -- my spouse and I will screen-share it up onto the TV, and it's fun to overanalyze every decision together (why yes, we are both software engineers).
I play the erratic deck a lot, since I find it pushes me into trying things I might not have otherwise, instead of shoehorning every run into the couple of safe strategies that always work. But the anaglyph deck is also a ton of fun if you time the tags well. I managed to get 10 negative jokers in one run and it was hilarious (even if it was not actually all that good).
posted by duien at 10:07 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
I play the erratic deck a lot, since I find it pushes me into trying things I might not have otherwise, instead of shoehorning every run into the couple of safe strategies that always work. But the anaglyph deck is also a ton of fun if you time the tags well. I managed to get 10 negative jokers in one run and it was hilarious (even if it was not actually all that good).
posted by duien at 10:07 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
Triple Click podcast: We Seriously Can't Stop Playing Balatro
posted by AlSweigart at 10:23 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by AlSweigart at 10:23 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
I've had Balatro on my wishlist for a bit -- I've found that deck-building roguelikes/roguelites suit me pretty well, and this one looks good. A mobile version would probably push me over the edge into purchasing.
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:24 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by The Great Big Mulp at 10:24 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
I've unlocked everything, and done every challenge, in Balatro. I haven't done all difficulties with all decks, because that would take forever, but I've done all the difficulties and gotten all the decks.
Balatro gives you a lot of choices, and only a few of them are really good choices, but it takes a while to learn what they are, and they can change depending on what comes up on a run. That's a roundabout way of saying that synergies between different kinds of Jokers, enhancements, seals, etc. matter a lot, and most things can help you out a lot if paired with specific other things. It shows the kind of design that seems to be simple when you start playing, but as it turns out is the result of a great deal of playtesting. The game can be broken wide open, the fact that the antes go up so high and that the game supports scientific notation for chips indicates that, but it takes a good while to learn how to do it, and that process of learning, in fact, is what makes Balatro fun.
posted by JHarris at 10:59 AM on September 5 [2 favorites]
Balatro gives you a lot of choices, and only a few of them are really good choices, but it takes a while to learn what they are, and they can change depending on what comes up on a run. That's a roundabout way of saying that synergies between different kinds of Jokers, enhancements, seals, etc. matter a lot, and most things can help you out a lot if paired with specific other things. It shows the kind of design that seems to be simple when you start playing, but as it turns out is the result of a great deal of playtesting. The game can be broken wide open, the fact that the antes go up so high and that the game supports scientific notation for chips indicates that, but it takes a good while to learn how to do it, and that process of learning, in fact, is what makes Balatro fun.
posted by JHarris at 10:59 AM on September 5 [2 favorites]
I'm intrigued to see how the display size works, having been disappointed by other mobile card game ports in the past - I loved the idea of Hearthstone for mobile, but didn't actually enjoy the gameplay because everything felt too small. I've also conditioned myself to prefer playing Balatro with a controller, so strongly that it feels weird now to play with a mouse. I'll probably stick with the PC version but this is good news for folks who will enjoy wee Balatro.
posted by terretu at 11:29 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by terretu at 11:29 AM on September 5 [1 favorite]
Fuck you, Q4 OKRs!
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 12:36 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 12:36 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
I’m trying not to get this. I’m deep enough into the PC version at 180 hours that I don’t fully trust myself to abstain, though. (I’ve decided to reach Completionist+ slowly over time. Currently grinding Gold Stake deck by deck; got Red, Blue, Green and Yellow already, and just beat Purple Stake on Black deck yesterday)
posted by jklaiho at 12:49 PM on September 5
posted by jklaiho at 12:49 PM on September 5
Global Productivity Shortage Predicted for Sept 26th
Sept 26th is also the street date for the new Zelda game. But more importantly, and much more urgently, Ace Attorney Investigations Collection ships tomorrow, including a translation for the sequel that never shipped internationally. Also: Astrobot. It is a blessed month.
posted by pwnguin at 1:12 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
Sept 26th is also the street date for the new Zelda game. But more importantly, and much more urgently, Ace Attorney Investigations Collection ships tomorrow, including a translation for the sequel that never shipped internationally. Also: Astrobot. It is a blessed month.
posted by pwnguin at 1:12 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
Balatro starts like a gambling game, then you realize it's a puzzle and resources game.
posted by panhopticon at 2:30 PM on September 5 [3 favorites]
posted by panhopticon at 2:30 PM on September 5 [3 favorites]
I'm at 180 hours and just finished Completionist+ (Gold Stakes on all decks). Initially I was put off when I saw it on YouTube but it's maybe the best rogue-like I've played. So many choices and strategies; I'm still finding new ways to optimize. Balatro University is probably the best YouTube channel to learn. If this game format were somehow monetized / converted to gambling (the maker said the IP would never end up with casinos), it could be quite evil.
Strategy advice for higher stakes: your xmult joker is key, then supplement that with mult and chips as you can (except of course for Plasma, my favorite deck, where it's chips only). Aim for high cards, pairs, or flushes. Feel free to restart the first ante until you find tags/first boss you like. For new players, Friday afternoon is the best time to start. Even better is not having a job at all.
posted by Hume at 2:41 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
Strategy advice for higher stakes: your xmult joker is key, then supplement that with mult and chips as you can (except of course for Plasma, my favorite deck, where it's chips only). Aim for high cards, pairs, or flushes. Feel free to restart the first ante until you find tags/first boss you like. For new players, Friday afternoon is the best time to start. Even better is not having a job at all.
posted by Hume at 2:41 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
I've been waiting for the mobile port for months. But I am very tempted to pick up the PC version right now, simply because (a) I just found out that my laptop can run it, (b) it looks like it's specifically designed to plug into my brain's pleasure center and (c) there is an app out there that can convert the PC version into an Android .apk. I would really like to see the game make the transition to mobile untouched and untainted, and of equal quality and quality-of-life as its PC cousin, and I hope it does... but this would be insurance.
And it's not like paying $15 for the Steam version instead of $10 for the mobile version hurts the authors. I can always buy the mobile version later. And this way I don't have to wait three weeks.
posted by delfin at 5:19 PM on September 5
And it's not like paying $15 for the Steam version instead of $10 for the mobile version hurts the authors. I can always buy the mobile version later. And this way I don't have to wait three weeks.
posted by delfin at 5:19 PM on September 5
For all of you just considering a purchase, doooo it. First hit’s free, man.
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 5:40 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 5:40 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]
I just went on a Balatro after not playing for five months, and after a few hard-earned games I finally won!
posted by slogger at 6:39 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]
posted by slogger at 6:39 PM on September 5 [1 favorite]
It's a damn good game, hits that sweet spot of super simple to start then the complexity ramps up a couple times and then you're wondering how the hell you're gonna get 300,000,000 chips.
posted by Sphinx at 8:06 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
posted by Sphinx at 8:06 PM on September 5 [2 favorites]
I have one joker left to unlock, and I keep getting maddeningly close. I have gotten gold stakes on the blue deck and am trying for it on the black.
I think the last challenge is going to remain undone. I have an idea of how to approach it, but I don't think the grind would be pleasant at all.
posted by pattern juggler at 3:20 AM on September 6
I think the last challenge is going to remain undone. I have an idea of how to approach it, but I don't think the grind would be pleasant at all.
posted by pattern juggler at 3:20 AM on September 6
Bought it. If the mobile version ends up being flawed, I paid $15 for the full version on my tablet instead of $10 for that. If it's amazing and differs in meaningful ways, I can pay $10 more for it and still have the PC version as a bonus.
A handful of games in, and I've reached Ante 7 so far. While I'm liking it, I am aware that any attempt at saying "ah, I see why people love this" would get responses of "oh, you sweet summer child" so far. The insane Joker synergy madness lies deeper.
posted by delfin at 4:45 PM on September 6 [1 favorite]
A handful of games in, and I've reached Ante 7 so far. While I'm liking it, I am aware that any attempt at saying "ah, I see why people love this" would get responses of "oh, you sweet summer child" so far. The insane Joker synergy madness lies deeper.
posted by delfin at 4:45 PM on September 6 [1 favorite]
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posted by HearHere at 9:10 AM on September 5