Indie poker roguelike and unstoppable time devourer Balatro has won the Breakthrough Award at the Golden Joystick Awards 2024.
The Breakthrough Award is judged by a panel of critics, and celebrates the developers who create unexpected masterpieces that are genuinely surprising and keep us coming back for more. If you've spent any time this year juggling Balatro's selection of jokers then you'll know why it deserves this honor – I myself am writing this in somewhat of a haze after sailing into the wee small hours once again last night, when 'a quick round' escalated into a blur of cards feeding back off each other and propelling me to a satisfying victory.
For the uninitiated, Balatro is a simple poker game at its core, where you need to play the best hands you can make to win chips and defeat the increasingly large 'blinds' to move on to the next level. However, the genius lies in what solo developer LocalThunk did to this format, adding in jokers that award bonus chips, multipliers, or completely change how the cards interact with each other.
On top of this there are ways to add, remove, and modify the cards in the deck itself, opening up new strategies and even the opportunity to play 'secret' poker hands that would normally be illegal – Five of a Kind or a Flush House, anyone? As this is a roguelike, the jokers and modifiers available to you are randomized for each playthrough, with fresh cards unlocked as you progress, creating an endless "just one more go" loop as you discover new combinations that can send your chip count through the roof.
Despite the developer's wildly low expectations, Balatro has proven to be a true breakthrough hit in 2024, selling over 2 million copies on PC and consoles before topping the mobile sales charts when it launched for iOS and Android in September. The game has also had an impact with a number of high profile developers, leading to a free update adding custom card artwork themed on The Witcher 3, Vampire Survivors, Among Us, and more. With a completely free "major gameplay update" promised for next year bringing "new ideas and strategies" to the game, you can expect to hear a lot more about Balatro in 2025.
