Fighting his own roguelike monster, Balatro creator says he's "146/150 for completionist++ and getting a taste of my own medicine"

Mr Balatro himself, developer LocalThunk, is being consumed by the very beast he unleashed on the world. He's currently trying to do a completionist++ run which is very, very difficult unless you're some sort of Balatro savant.

To get the completionist++ achievement, you have to beat Gold Stake difficulty using every single one of Balatro's 150 Jokers. As a refresher, Gold Stake rules include: small blinds give no reward money, so your economy is harder to manage; required scores get higher faster; fewer discards; and Jokers that are eternal, perishable, or even cost money to keep each round.

"But fr I'm at 146/150 for completionist++ and getting a taste of my own medicine," LocalThunk posted on Bluesky. The post was in reply to the "are ya winning son?" meme, which showed a game over Balatro screen. He'd lost to The Wall – we've all been there, brother.

It's hard enough to do completionist+ – but LocalThunk did manage it – which needs you to beat Gold Stake with every deck, but having to use every single Joker too is just cruel. Some of them are real stinkers. Loyalty Card gives you a 4x multiplier every six hands, so it's very occasional, and you'd be better off using something that gives you a more consistent multiplier.

There's also Credit Card, which lets you go into $20 of debt, but at Gold Stake you really need something that's giving you extra chips, hands, mult, or multiplication.

Luckily, you only need a Joker with you right at the end, so if you're lucky, you can use four great Jokers and then take one you don't even need into the final round with you. So, if you're struggling, try that out. But if the game's own creator can't even do it, what chance do I have?

If you've finished the achievement or need a break from trying, check out all the upcoming indie games of 2025.