Balatro creator added extra Jokers to the hit roguelike because someone at its publisher "mentioned something about '150 Jokers' and instead of correcting them I just made 30 more"
Oct. 29, 2024Could you survive without these cards?
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Roguelike deck-builder Balatro is one of thebest roguelike gamesbecause it’s like real poker with about 100% less risk and 100% more surrealist fun. Special Joker cards with unique, enhancing abilities are integral to winning, letting players do devious things like amass more money or multiply their scores. And according to Balatro’s solo developer LocalThunk, there wouldn’t be so many of them if it weren’t for a slight miscommunication.
“I once told Playstack (my publisher) that the full version of Balatro would have 120 Jokers,” LocalThunk saidon Twitter. “In a meeting later that week, they mentioned something about ‘150 Jokers,’ and instead of correcting them, I just made 30 more Jokers.”
Because they didn’t plan to have 150 Jokers, LocalThunksaysthey initially had no ideas for the additional cards, but that “life finds a way.”
Though LocalThunk doesn’t remember which 30 Jokers owe their existence to life finding a way, in a separate tweet theysharethat several fan-favorite cards would “be in the ether if I spoke up.” Those cards include Lucky Cat (which earns a 0.25x multiplier whenever a Lucky card is played), Baseball Card (which supplies a 1.5x multiplier for each Uncommon Joker you hold), and the rare card Campfire (which receives a 0.25x multiplier per each card you sell).
“So… the best ones?” repliesone fanon Twitter.
“A lot of these are personal favorites,” saysa popular reply. “Thanks for not speaking up.”
“Thank GOD you have social anxiety, or this game would be so much harder,” agreesanother fan. It’s true. At its core, LocalThunk’s story is a moral tale: now we know there’s at least one thing that being too quiet is good for.
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Ashley Bardhan is a critic from New York who covers gaming, culture, and other things people like. She previously wrote Inverse’s award-winning Inverse Daily newsletter. Then, as a Kotaku staff writer and Destructoid columnist, she covered horror and women in video games. Her arts writing has appeared in a myriad of other publications, including Pitchfork, Gawker, and Vulture.
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