Puh-Puh-Puh-Puh-Poker Face

The Steam Summer Sale ended last week so hopefully everyone was able to snatch a few titles off of their wishlists.  Besides my purchase of the new "Alice's Adventures" DLC for PowerWash Simulator, I finally grabbed the "Phantom Liberty" content for CyberPunk 2077 and the poker-based card game Balatro.  I have to be in just the right mood to want to start up another CyberPunk run and it hasn't struck me just yet, so I decided to check out Balatro first.

What is it?

A deckbuilder that is based around poker but that has its own challenge that's much deeper than simply cobbling together decent hands.  Basically, your goal is to build a deck that is strong enough to continually meet a growing target.  Each "ante" consists of 3 rounds--the small blind (with the lowest chip requirement), the big blind, and then a blind with a random set of modifiers.  To "win" in each round you must earn a certain number of chips.  There are several factors that influence this--1.) the cards you play.  Card value follows basic poker rules--aces are worth 11, face cards are worth 10, and number cards are worth their number value.  2.) the hand you play.  You can play 5 cards and they are also scored according to poker rules.  More complex hands are worth more and get a bigger multiplier. (If you're a bit of a poker ding-dong like me, I'd recommend keeping a picture of a scoring chart handy so that you can remember if a straight is worth more than three of a kind)  That's basic scoring, but here's where things get fun.  Each round is made up of 5 hands and you also get a certain number of discards (which can consist of up to 5 cards--you are dealt 8 cards).  At the end of each round you earn money for any remaining hands or discards (and you can also earn interest if you have leftover money).  This money can be used to purchase cards and card packs--this includes special jokers that offer up varying bonuses--these bonuses can include multipliers for certain hands, additional chips/multiplier when you play a certain suit of card, or many, many other bonuses (part of the fun is trying to unlock the 150 jokers).  Your deck can include 5 different jokers and a big part of the strategy is trying to figure out which jokers work well in combination with each other to net the best outcomes.

A boss round featuring a debuff.

Jokers are one way to improve the number of chips (or money) you earn, but you can also buff your deck and increase the amount that each hand is worth.  You can purchase additional standard card packs that can feature "enhanced" cards--there are several varieties of enhancements like glass cards that are worth a 1.5 multiplier but have a 1 in 4 chance of being destroyed when you play them or gold seal cards that award $3 when scored.  There are also tarot cards that can be used to enhance, change, or delete cards in your deck; celestial cards that increase the amount that certain hands are worth; and spectral cards that offer a bit of risk but with a bigger reward.

The third round of each ante features a "boss blind" that poses a randomized challenge--you might face a round that makes all your spades worth 0 or that deals every 7th card face down.  There are 30+ varieties of blind and the 8th ante features a big boss blind that's even tougher than the regular bosses.  Your ultimate goal is to keep making your deck stronger to overcome to increasing challenge.  I've made it to the big boss blind exactly twice...and failed.

Pros:

+ Addictive gameplay that is deceptively simple. It's poker...something that most people are probably somewhat familiar with, but there's also strategy.  You've got to figure out the best joker combos and then try to craft your deck around them.

+ A sort of "roguelike" vibe.  Each round/ante is different and that helps keep the gameplay interesting.  The card packs and jokers you get vary each round.

Some of the jokers in my collection--featuring the Gros Michel!

+ Tons of jokers and other cards to collect.  They're ranked sort of like armor in an RPG--common, uncommon, rare, and even legendary (I've seen exactly 1 legendary card...and I still lost!).  Each joker gives a unique buff--one of my personal favorites is the Gros Michel--a card featuring a banana that rewards a +15 multiplier but that has a 1 in 6 chance of self-destruction.  Basically, it's good while it lasts and part of the fun is seeing how long you can keep that banana in your hand.

+ Low requirements.  Potato-level fun for the whole family.  Runs like a charm.

+ Nice music.

+ Unlockable decks.  Each deck has a specific buff--for example, the red deck offers up 1 additional discard per round.

+ Challenge mode.  I haven't unlocked this because I'm a loser who hasn't managed to down the big boss, but once you've won with 5 different decks you can be a real pro.

+ It's one of those games where you can lose over and over but still want to play.

Cons:

- Just one more round....589258904380258 rounds later.  It's addictive (but so good).  That's my only con.

Recommendation:

If you're looking for a soul-eating card game, this is the one.  Balatro is perfect for short or long gaming sessions and the challenge and randomness keep you coming back.  It seems so simple....but is anything but!  Definitely worth full price.