The appetite for both roguelike games, like Vampire Survivors or Rogue Legacy, and deckbuilders, like Slay the Spire and Inscryption, never seems to disappear. When both of these genres are combined intelligently, it isn’t much of a surprise that audiences are more than interested to check out the result for themselves. This is the case with Steam hit Balatro, which uses poker cards and rules as a launching pad for an inventive, compulsively playable game that has sold an enormous amount in less than a week since its launch.
Balatro‘s unique take on card games has earned it an Overwhelmingly Positive rating on Steam and helped it shift 250,000 copies in the first three days it was available.
Balatro’s publisher, PlayStack, told GamesIndustry.biz that the game’s launch last week also saw it hit another incredible milestone: $1,000,000 USD in gross profits within just eight hours of it coming out. This makes it the fastest-selling game to be put out by PlayStack to date.
Created by solo developer PlayThunk, Balatro has grabbed attention through a design approach that turns traditional poker into an arcade-style high score chase, complete with absurd twists on the well-known card game’s rules. The usual roguelike hook of trying again and again for more successful runs, together with the massive combos possible with ever-expanding decks, makes it hard to put down and has obviously led to great word of mouth.
If Balatro isn’t your speed, though, we have you covered with lists of some of our favorite roguelike games and indie games.
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