2026-06-10
Pretty good with Some flaws
Would call it a masterpiece if the first hand wasn’t completely luck
Updating
+1
#10 in Top Paid Apps
±0
#8 in Top Paid Apps > Games
±0
±0
-4
+1
#18 in Top Paid iPad Apps
+2
#12 in Top Paid iPad Apps > Games
±0
+2
iPhone Screenshots
iPad Screenshots
Description
Welcome to the official Balatro mobile game!
Hypnotic and endlessly satisfying, Balatro is a magical mix of card games like Solitaire and Poker, that lets you twist the rules in ways never seen before!
Your goal is to beat the Boss Blinds by making strong poker hands.
Find new Jokers that change the game and create awesome and exciting combos! Win enough chips to beat tricky bosses, and find hidden bonus hands and decks as you play. You’ll need all the help you can get to beat the big boss, win the final challenge, and win the game.
Features:
* Remastered controls for touch screen devices.
* Each run is different: every pick-up, discard and joker can dramatically alter the course of your run.
* Multiple game items: discover over 150 Jokers, each with special powers. Use them with different decks,upgrade cards and vouchers to boost your scores.
* Different Game modes: Campaign mode and challenge mode for you to play.
* Beautiful Pixel Art: Immerse yourself in the CRT fuzz and enjoy detailed, hand-crafted pixel art.
What's New in Version 1.3
App store meta data change.
Seller
Name
Playstack Ltd
Information
Developer
Version
1.3
Size
98 MB
Game Center
Yes
VPP Device Licensing
Yes
Rating
Rated 12+ for the following:
Infrequent/Mild Simulated Gambling
Infrequent/Mild Mature/Suggestive Themes
Infrequent/Mild Horror/Fear Themes
Compatibility
iOS 13.5 or later
Devices
iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE (2nd generation), iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 13, iPhone 13 Pro, iPhone 13 Pro Max, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone SE (3rd generation), iPhone 14, iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 16e, iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, iPhone 17e, iPad (5th Generation) Wi-Fi, iPad (5th Generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (6th generation) Wi-Fi, iPad (6th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro, iPad Pro (Cellular), iPad Pro (9.7-inch), iPad Pro (9.7-inch) (Cellular), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (2nd generation), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (2nd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro (10.5-inch), iPad Pro (10.5-inch) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro (11-inch), iPad Pro (11-inch) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air, iPad Air (Cellular), iPad Air 2, iPad Air 2 (Cellular), iPad Air (3rd generation), iPad Air (3rd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini Retina, iPad mini Retina (Cellular), iPad mini 3, iPad mini 3 (Cellular), iPad mini 4, iPad mini 4 (Cellular), iPad mini (5th Generation), iPad mini (5th Generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (7th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (2nd generation), iPad Pro 11-inch (2nd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (4th generation), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (4th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air (4th Generation) (Wi-Fi), iPad Air (4th Generation) (Wi-Fi + Cellular), iPad (8th generation) Wi-Fi, iPad (8th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd generation), iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th Generation), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th Generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (9th Generation), iPad (9th Generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini (6th Generation), iPad mini (6th Generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air (5th generation), iPad Air (5th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (4th generation), iPad Pro 11-inch (4th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 12.9-inch (6th generation), iPad Pro 12.9-inch (6th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (10th generation), iPad (10th generation) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 11-inch (M2) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 13-inch (M2) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 13-inch (M2) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (M4) Wi-Fi, iPad Pro 11-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 13-inch (M4) Wi-Fi, iPad Pro 13-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad mini (A17 Pro) Wi-Fi, iPad mini (A17 Pro) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad (A16) Wi-Fi, iPad (A16) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 11-inch (M3) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 11-inch (M3) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 13-inch (M3) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 13-inch (M3) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 11-inch (M5) Wi-Fi, iPad Pro 11-inch (M5) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Pro 13-inch (M5) Wi-Fi, iPad Pro 13-inch (M5) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 11-inch (M4) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 11-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPad Air 13-inch (M4) Wi-Fi, iPad Air 13-inch (M4) Wi-Fi + Cellular, iPod touch (6th Generation), iPod touch (7th generation)
Languages
English, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
App Store: Customer Ratings
Ratings & Reviews
5.0 of 5 (102,398 Ratings)
App Store: Customer Reviews
2026-06-10
This is my favorite pizza place
Read title
2026-06-09
Amazing Game - App Store Version is Awful
I want to preface this by saying that I ADORE this game. I own two copies already (PC and Switch) and have poured more hours into it than I care to admit.
That said, the app store version is absolutely not worth the ten dollars I paid for it. I wish I had looked at the critical reviews before purchasing because apparently the issue I’ve been dealing with is a known issue that they just haven’t fixed.
Something is very wrong with how the save data works. I am trying to carefully unlock all the decks, jokers, and vouchers and the game will tell me I successfully unlocked something, only for it to still be locked the next run I start. For example, I’ve completed so many yellow deck runs and the game refuses to unlock the next stake or the deck you unlock with a successful yellow run.
This is so frustrating. It’s impossible to make any progress in the game like this. Save your money and buy this game on another device instead.
2026-06-08
Bug fixed nvm
Had a game breaking bug but they fixed it after several months and while I usually would be upset it took so long this game is so good idc.
2026-06-08
Hours
One of the only games I have been able to play for hours on hours and never get bored. Even when you lose over and over again it just has a way to bring you back. ❤️
2026-06-08
My favorite gambling game
It’s like gambling but I don’t have spend my sons college fund on slots
2026-06-08
Wonderful Port
Played for numerous hours on a handheld pc. Got tired of lugging that thing around. It works well
2026-06-08
Inability to Play
After the most release of Balatro (trial version), I am unable to play Balatro without disconnecting from the internet completely, be it cellular data or WiFi. This is inconvenient as a player since playing offline doesn’t exactly save your EXACT progress in the game/ during a run, only before a boss blind if you were previously IN the boss blind, after beating the boss blind and collecting your income/ reward cash after a blind but before making any purchases in the shop… etc.. I of course have purchased the full game since the middle of last year and have been playing almost every day since then, now of course I am experiencing this issue - hope this resolves soon.
2026-06-08
Bought for $10 riddled with bugs
Can’t even play this right. Every time I try to buy any cards and pull them to the buy area nothing happens. Over and over and over.
2026-06-07
Incredible game
I’m not much of a card game person and I absolutely love this game! Arguably the best mobile game I’ve ever downloaded! Would highly recommend to anybody
2026-06-05
Best Game EVERRRR
I love this game
2026-06-04
Really bad bug
Switched phones and lost all progression
2026-06-03
Cut back the bottlenecking.
I love this game. Have played it since launch and play a lot. That said, the “ai learning” in the game is really starting to kill the fun. Almost every hand seems to have an auto fail system where, if you are focusing a certain build, you will stop receiving anything relative. I consistently can have 10+ of a single card, discard 3 times, and not get a single one. This supposed to be a challenge, that’s why there are different decks. It’s not fun to play against a system set up to limit you to one pathway.
2026-06-03
cards
i like cards, buy this game immediately
2026-06-03
Super glitched on iPhone
Last 4-5 gold stake runs I’ve won haven’t saved… tried redownloading the app, relaunching, everything. Looking at the discord this seems to be a common issue for a long time and the devs can’t be bothered to fix it
2026-06-03
👍
👍
2026-06-03
2026 still best mobile card game
2026 still best mobile card game. Goated
2026-06-01
Literally every friend I have shown this game to has bought it
All of my friends love this game. It doesn't matter what preferences in gaming they have, they all love Balatro. Amazing game the only thing I would wish for is something like being able to build your own Joker that would be pretty cool.
2026-05-31
Literal Crack
If you are the a certain type of mind, this will suck many hours, giving you dopamine. Thank goodness there’s no micro transactions.
2026-05-31
Woah…
Balero…
2026-05-30
Balatro is ADDICTIVE
I love this game so much I downloaded it on three different devices.
2026-05-30
absolutely amazing
definitely worth the 10 dollars
2026-05-30
Amazing game
One of if not the best rouge like card games amazing music art and sound design
2026-05-30
AMAZING GAME WORTH THE 10$!!! But…
So the game is great and I have been playing it for 2 months now but something I’ve noticed is that it drains your battery like a bish
2026-05-30
best card game ever
Love the game
2026-05-29
Janky
Janky
2026-05-28
300+ hours on mobile
This game took my life for 3 months and i still play it to this day. worth every cent of the 10 bucks you will pay for it.
2026-05-28
Completely Hooked.
Just completed Completionist++ and can say without a shadow of a doubt this is the best money I’ve ever spent in the App Store. It’s downright addictive. No two runs are ever the same. Incredibly balanced. The learning curve is extremely rewarding. Cannot wait for the next update.
2026-05-28
Great game
I never usually write review, but this is one of the most engaging mobile games I’ve ever played. Once you start to understand how it works the combinations are limitless.
2026-05-28
Originally bought on Xbox, then had to get my fix on the go
^
2026-05-27
Awesome game
You may loose days of you life to this
2026-05-27
Oh auto
Nice
2026-05-25
Perfect
I was so bored out of my mind and tired of playing fighting games. Then I found this. Buying jokers and selling them for money (in game currency) is a perfect idea. Each blind you beat you earn money depending on your performance. You can buy tarot cards and vouchers etc. I never thought a card game could be this fun!
2026-05-25
Danger!
Hours will tick by, they will roll in two days. If you have an addiction to gaming, this game will be your new fix. Be warned!
2026-05-24
Idk
Good game
2026-05-23
Вообще топ
Я прям кайфую от этой игры! Были бы еще какие нибудь обновления можно было бы пропасть там днями!
2026-05-23
Fantastic game
Bought this game for my iPad/phone and Ps5. It runs especially well on mobile, and since it doesn’t need WiFi, you can play it for hours on a 4 hour flight. Insanely replayable. Worth all the coin and more. 100% would recommend
2026-05-22
I have a gambiling addiction because of this game
This is the best game ever, I betted all my life savings to black because of this game, 10/10, definitely recommended
2026-05-22
I AM BURSTING WITH JOY
It is everywhere.
2026-05-22
Phenomenal Game
The game is very well designed and well worth every cent, but be aware, it’ll get you quite addicted 😁
2026-05-22
I like it!
I play it during every aerobic workout
2026-05-22
Good card game
Easy to pick up, learn, and play
2026-05-20
Disappointed
I had high hopes for this game. However, being a avid student of the Bible, I am turned off by the use of tarot cards. I’ll be removing this game.
2026-05-20
This game is holding life together
Great zen game to play every day
2026-05-19
card game from dave the diver
so addicting. worth the purchase
2026-05-19
cool
Le epik gaem. 5 stars.
2026-05-18
Balatro
Balatro
2026-05-18
I’m addicted
I cannot put this game down, I knew what I was getting but it is so much better than what I thought. This game is so good because no ads, no in app purchases, nothing other than addictive gameplay. I see why it’s one of the only 5 starred games that has 100k+ reviews
2026-05-17
Good game
I loooove balatro but I can’t it too much or my phone will die but it’s soooo good
2026-05-17
awesome game
flawless
2026-04-01
Good, not Great
I believed the hype, bought the game, and enjoyed it for a week. Then I deleted it. It’s good, not great, but really close to great, and there are two reasons why.
First are the boss battles. Not because they’re tough, but because they’re stupid, reducing an otherwise smart game based on skill and strategy to pure luck. Stuff like: Draw cards face down. Draw face cards face down. Play only one hand type. All really dumb, unless you have the joker that undoes boss powers (you won’t most times).
Second are the Jokers. This could have been a stellar game with a few dozen jokers and combos for extra power ups. But there must be hundreds of jokers in this game, on top of celestial cards, on top of tarot cards, on top of stone and steel and glass cards. You want to study up every card? Be my guest. I bet most people don’t and delete this game quickly. There is no preview for the score of your hand and runs can take up to an hour or more for good ones, only to find the straight or whatever you need won’t happen with tarots and face down cards in the next major boss battle. Such a frustrating shame.
2026-03-24
So much fun!
I adore this game and a big part of it is that there is no upselling, no expansion packs, no in-app-purchases - just a great game at a good price. The first few times I was sort of like "meh" but then I realized how much more control you have over the game - the selection of Jokers and the method of play is constantly evolving with each game, and it is more of less like old fashioned solitaire in that you do win - but on very, very rare occasion. And if you do get better then you can change the deck you use to continue making it fun and challenging. Kudos to the developer - if you could find a way to bring dice into the game - I'd buy that update in a heartbeat! Love this app!
2026-01-27
The Amazing Poker Rougelite Is Now on Mobile
I don’t normally review mobile games but Balatro will be the exception. If you are unfamiliar with the game it’s basically Poker and you win by beating what the game calls Blinds. You start by playing Poker but then you get to the shop and this is where the fun begins you can buy Jokers which change how you play the game. Wanna build a deck built around Flushes you can do that, wanna build one around playing straights using only four cards you can do that, wanna play Five of A Kind in Balatro you can do that. This game is worth every single penny and you will lose a lot of time it’s that good and no run is the same. ALSO THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY NO MICROTRANSACTOONS OR ADS. Buy it you will not regret it. Also never forget the mantra ALWAYS BET ON BANANA!!!!
2026-01-26
Poker Reinvented
This is not poker. While there are elements that are similar to poker, this is a complete reinvention. There is no gambling. In fact, if you know poker, it could work against you at first. What starts off as simply winning the game turns into a delightful progression of challenges. You see, once you figured out how to win with the first deck, a new deck of cards with new rules is unlocked.
Jokers are at the heart of this game. Some can help you, some could work against you. It all depends upon your current strategy in what you’ve already invested. Then add special power-up cards, which could add points, add to a multiplier or even multiply the multiplier. There’s also a shop to upgrade your scoring power. When you find a combination that works, it’s incredibly satisfying seeing the score go from tens to hundreds to thousands and more!
It is simply incredibly fun.
2026-01-04
Fantastic game
Not only is the game great, but when I had an issue and sent a support request (I was stuck on loading cloud data for like a day) it was fixed in seconds after I had been troubleshooting it for hours and my data was still there. I can’t definitively prove that someone did something as I haven’t gotten a reply to the request and it could have been coincidence, but I still have the error in the Belatro+ thru Apple Arcade, where I don’t really have any progress and I haven’t submitted a request there. I’ve chosen to believe in whimsy, and that they have a crack team that immediately fixed the issue. Maybe I’m wrong and maybe I’m an idiot, but I’m a happy idiot. WELL WORTH the 10$.
2025-12-29
Probably the best mobile game in existence
I played a bit of Balatro on the pc, which was fun but not really the type of game I’d sit down at a keyboard for and just get into. But discovering it on iOS has been a game changer. It might just be the perfect mobile game — Addicting, relatively easy to get into, challenging, infinite replayability, and can be picked up and put down at any moment without losing game progress. The philosophy of the creator means the game is the game; no microtransactions or anything of the like.
I think there is certainly a learning curve for the game, as well as a limitation on how far you can advance depending on your intelligence or willingness to watch videos on strategy. I’m terrible at math, so my ceiling has been relatively low, but it has been enjoyable to learn how to play the game better.
For $9 you really can’t go wrong with this one.
2025-10-17
Balatro- the pinnacle of deceit, deception, love, friends, and betrayal.
Don’t think you’re gonna not bond to a card. It’s bound to happen. Friendship and loss, tragedy and faithfulness all breaks or is hardened in this game. Lose your favorite joker. Make an amazing play. Get betrayed by your horrible luck. Have a card say something but be wrong and do something else, or do something even better. Although that’s like 3 cards. Bond with cards and find their strengths and weaknesses. The learning curve is high and steep. Don’t expect to drop this game in the start. When you drop it, you always come back. The addiction never stops. Get ready for a game of chips and multipliers. Sounds simple? No. Get out.
10/10. Changed my life. I understand the meaning of the universe. Learned how to cook real food and not garbage. Fixed my impatience. Fixed my life. Get ready. This game will change it all- and more.
2025-08-25
Play this game immediately (use a controller, IMO it plays much better)
First off, I enjoyed this game more using a controller, I have it on my ps5 & switch. It just feels nicer & more clicky.
I was a huge solitaire fan growing up but poker never interested me. Balatro is now my favorite card game of all time. I heard about it by someone saying “omg im addicted to this game it’s soooo good. It’s poker so you’ve gotta learn that but there’s jokers that you add to your deck that have special abilities, it’s great!”. So I tried it out & I’ve been playing almost every day since.
I didn’t know a thing about poker, but the game made it very clear & easy going to learn. No complications, everything you need is right there a click away. Then I realized it’s like a rogue like card game, which is something that I just love. Do yourself a favor, play this game.
2025-07-23
Fun at first, but it's just another "RNG" card game based on punishment/reward algos
Balatro is really fun at first (especially in the tutorial seeds), but then you quickly realize the "random" is not actually random. Statistical anomalies will regularly pop up until you finally just understand the game isn't random at all, but that the seeds are punishing or rewarding you based off their pre-defined paths. Isn't the entire point of basing a game off poker or a deck of cards or saying "1 in 4 chance" to actually have chance involved instead of this strange "reward or punishment" metric we have in all these games now? Instead you will face statistical anomalies that you'd have a better chance at jumping and gravity not working than you would at ever encountering in real life, and it makes the game so lame to see it put it's thumb on the scale over and over and over (and over). It says it's based off poker but there is definitely no point in thinking statistically in this game...you are a child being handed shapes to put in the right hole and the game punishes you if you don't understand what it's asking you to do, which again is just so lame to me personally. The game looks amazing and handles well so I gave it an extra star for being beautiful, but it is not fun for me when I'm forced to play some algo and not statistics in a game that disguises itself... instead it feels like all the other "RNG" card games that are just wasting your time forcing you to play some hidden algorithm to bend to the games will and frankly that is the last idea of fun to me. If you go into this thinking "I have to play this seed's theme that is coercing me into a set of choices" you will have fun, if you go in thinking actual statistics similar to poker will play any role you will be deeply deeply disappointed.
2025-06-16
The same experience every time
I cannot express how often I try booting up this game, because I do really like the gameplay loop. It offers me something to do when I have absolutely nothing else to pass the time with. The facade of deck building is engaging enough that it feels like you’re progressing a little bit at a time.
My main problem are the challenge levels, the bosses, whatever you want to call them. It seems like every time I boot up this game, I am offered upgrades by the shop that are immediately taken away from me by one of the boss’s conditions. Stuff like “all clubs are debuffed” and “you have to play a different hand type every round.” All of the upgrades in the game are designed around rewarding particular hands. The tarots help you duplicate cards or give you bonuses from them being played, and the planets increase the multipliers you get for specific hands. These are the only way to progress, aside from the jokers. And when you take those upgrades away, you set the player back to square one.
I understand the need for challenge, since the game is incredibly basic. But to me, the rng of deck building and pulling the right cards for your hand is challenge enough. It’s not even frustrating to encounter a boss that shuts down the only combo you’ve been allowed to buy. It’s just annoying, and reminds me why I don’t play this.
2025-06-04
I finally get the hype, but the bugs
I never understood why everyone liked this game so much. On a whim, I decided to try it out, and gods, I finally get it. I’m terrible at this game, but I can just space out and play. It is one of the best casual games I have. The only complaints I have are bugs with the mobile version. The saves are very buggy. It took resuming 5 runs to unlock the joker for continuing once. I have one win, but the game doesn’t recognize it, yet I still have the magic deck for getting that win. I used the “unlock all” button as I just wanted to space out and play, not try to unlock things, but it didn’t work and just gave me all the achievements for the collection. Nonetheless, this is a good game. I barely remembered the names of the suites before playing, now I’m obsessed.
2025-05-18
Fantastic Game
I picked this up after finishing an AP test in a class, so we essentially had nothing to do for the rest of the year and this game kept my attention. The replay ability for a game like this is crazy and every run feels very different than the last. My only issue is the fact that sometimes when I beat a new deck or difficulty, I will not get the chip signifying I completed it on the deck I beat or it will not unlock the following difficulty. This is very frustrating because it makes me have to do another run on the same settings when all I want to do is beat every deck with every difficulty, so this glitch is preventing me from doing it, but in having enough fun to the point where it doesn’t take away my enjoyment from the game. Highly recommend, the price is worth it, especially for a mobile game.
2025-05-01
Worth the price!
When I first got the game, I was met with a brief but very helpful tutorial. You learn how to play fast. I liked it right away. I've been playing over the course of at least a month. The game introduces new decks, stakes, and jokers as you progress. At the start of a run, you pick a deck, each one having a certain buff or special ability. Once you win a run, you unlock the next stake, being the next step up in difficulty. Higher stakes require you to score more but also manipulate a variety of mechanics. After each round you enter the shop, where you can buy upgrades, cards for you deck, card enhancements, and most importantly, jokers. With 150 jokers you are forced to develop a new strategy each game to make full use of the jokers you can get. The replayability of this game is unmatched compared to other strategy games. If your considering getting it, just get it. It's totally worth the $10.
2025-04-25
One glitch one recommendation
My favorite game in history amazing 5 star nothing better but there is one problem when I played the game earlier I beat black stake on green deck but I loaded a outdated save after I got off the wi-fi and now I have to beat black stake AGAIN but I still have the award on my apple account and I have the anaglyph deck but I still cannot play blue stake I had started a blue stake run as well before going offline but it says I have no saves to continue I almost deleted the game but got myself back on track when I was about to delete the game I realized that you should have accounts or password protected cloud saves so if you delete the game or go on another device you can load your cloud save PLEASE FIX THE GLITCH PLEASE and please take my idea into consideration thank you for reading this. Also shout out to Local Thunk for making the best game that has ever existed and will ever exist.
2025-03-24
Make a vertical mode for mobile
I don’t ever write reviews. I also never play games on my phone. However, this is the most addicting and fun game I’ve personally ever played on a mobile device. I loved it so much on my phone, I now play it on Xbox and PC. The one thing that would make it better on mobile in my opinion is to make a portrait or vertical mode of the game for phones. It’s so fun to play for a few minutes while waiting in line or in between meetings, but sometimes just using one hand is most convenient. It seems easily doable for the interface of the game. Would love to see this feature in the game one day. Until then, I’m loving every minute of it.
2025-03-21
I am the Balatro
As a Balatro I very much enjoy this game, but when you think you’ve found a winning strategy, a lot of times it kicks you where it hurts and you lose the run, and you’re upset about it until you realize if it were easy, it wouldn’t be fun and challenging. It encapsulates the human experience in a condensed format that if you’re thoughtful and considerate enough, can teach you a lot about life. Eventually you realize, we all are the Balatro. A bunch of jokers taking things way to seriously. The biggest Balatros among us, are trying to replace their entire deck with nothing but gold kings, because they have the Baron Joker, and want that NANINF even if it means destroying all the non face cards to do it.
2025-03-17
More addictive than crack cocaine
If you are employed or have any semblance of a social life, stay far away from this game. Within my first day of purchasing the app, I’ve already logged over 5 hours into this game. I’m genuinely addicted and there’s no turning back now. In all seriousness, though, the game absolutely rocks. The sound design and haptics are incredible and watching the score climb higher and higher releases more dopamine in my brain than any game aught to. Also, as a side note, I adore the custom cards and collaborations. Stardew Valley and Don’t Starve are two of my favorite games (after Balatro, of course) so it was pretty cool to be able to have my face cards represent some of the characters from those franchises. All this to say this is certainly my new favorite mobile game, probably of all time. Anyways, I hope whoever took the time to read my review is having an amazing day or night! Make sure to drink plenty of water and remember that you’re loved 💛
2025-03-17
I’ve never been obsessed with a game…
Actually can not stop playing. I downloaded it at 9pm and played it for 6 hours! Then woke up and immediately wanted to play it again. Last night I stayed up until 3am playing it again. It’s so good. Challenging and yet every “run” is different and you build different strategies. Love it so much- I’m going to have to set some time limits to playing this game or I will get nothing else done!
Taking away a star as it doesn’t always save your stats. It also doesn’t sync between iPad and phone. I took screenshots so I can see my best scores to date but still bummed that I just got a million in one hand and it’s not showing up in my stats. I guess it’s a known issue.
2025-03-14
Oh Balatro
Boy oh boy where do I even begin. Balatro.. honey, my pookie bear. I have loved you ever since I first laid eyes on you. The way you drive up that Mult and strike fear into the Boss Blinds. Your silky smooth Spectral Packs, and that gorgeous Jimbo. I would do anything for you. I wish it were possible to freeze time so I would never have to watch you become mid. You had a rough development, but you never gave up hope. You are even amazing off the Game Awards stage, you're a great game and deserving winner, sometimes I even call you dad. I forvever dread and weep, thinking of the day you will one day become mid. I would sacrifice my own life it were the only thing that could put a smile on your beautiful face. You have given me so much joy, and heartbreak over the years. I remember your first failed demo and its like my heart got broken into a million pieces. But a tear still fell from my right eye when I watched you win the Game Awards, because deep down, my glorious clown king deserved it. I just wanted you to become great. Then allas, you did, my sweet baby boy was played by the Game Awards Orchestra and I rejoiced. 2023 was a hard year for us baby, but in 2024 you made history happen. You came became a bestseller and I couldn't believe it. I was crying, bawling even, and I heard my glorious clown king exclaim these words, "GAMBLERS, THIS IS FOR YOU!" Not only have you changed the game of Poker and the world forever, but you've eternally changed my world. And now you're getting older, but still the goat, my goat. I love you pookie bear, my glorious king, Jimbo Balatro.
2025-02-28
Amazing Game. Horrible Bugs.
This is easily my favorite game that I picked up in 2024. So good that I bought it on mobile to play while traveling or leisurely throughout the day. However, there are numerous known bugs related to the mobile version of Balatro that have been known for months and no updates on the progress of fixing these bugs.
If you manage to win a run, you are mot guaranteed to have your stats saved for whatever reason. You can hit naneinf, unlock 4 vouchers, unlock the rest of your hidden planet cards and spectral cards, but it’s up to the game to decide if this run counts or not. It is extremely frustrating to win on black deck high stake which already has a very low win percentage across the entire community, only for your run to not count. I have never had this experience on the PC version of the game.
I would advise against purchasing Balatro until these bugs are fixed, as it is extremely frustrating for your progress to vanish right infront of you and you spend several hours hunting those final gold stickers, praying that you are magically granted the sticker that you have already earned previously but the server says otherwise.
Also, why do I even need to be connected to the internet for my progress to save? This is a card game with no multiplayer, no in app purchased. Exactly what do I need to have internet access for? I want to play this game on the plane but nope you need internet access or your save is out of date.
I’ll return to give this game the 5 stars it deserves once the frustrating bugs are fixed. Until then, I’ll find a different addiction to replace my gambling addiction.
2025-02-27
Only one big problem
This game is good. Hands down one of the best games I’ve ever played. The pixel art style is cool. The music is good. The gameplay is absolutely fantastic. It’s very fun and entertaining, and even though on paper it may seem like doing the same thing over and over, I can’t stop playing. I could actually get sucked into playing Belatro for hours if I didn’t stop myself. However, there is one really big problem. There’s a bug that causes a run to just not get saved, which really hinders progress, especially because it’s a pretty frequent problem too. It’s really aggravating; I’ve lost a hours of progress to this game-breaking glitch. As for what causes it, I’m not really sure, but I think it has something to do with cloud saves. Anyways, besides that one problem, the game is excellent. As soon as the bug gets fixed I’ll change my review to five stars, because that’s what the game really deserves.
2025-02-24
fix the obvious bugs, please for the love of God
I have been playing Balatro on mobile for quite a while now and I really really love the game. For the past few months or so it has become increasingly obvious that the game has bug wear it does not save achievements that being when you unlock a new deck or a new joker or be a challenge. I have contacted support about this issue and was only told that they understood that the issue was present and that they were addressing it. To try and fix the issue or see what other people have done,I went to Reddit only to find out that this issue has been persistent for the past half year. For this issue to be this persistent with little to no addressing or resolution is absurd and turns me off of playing the game entirely. Again, I love this game. I would love to continue playing it if and only if it is fixed in such a state that would allow you to actually progress through the game. Please please please fix this issue or at least speak on it rather than making false assurances that it is being resolved.
2025-02-07
Awesome game with some serious bugs
I, like many, have quickly become a Balatro addict in my free time. I so badly want to give this game 5 stars because it is incredibly fun, balances luck and strategy beautifully, and provides tons of entertainment and replayability. The issue is there are some glaring and incredibly frustrating bugs, that appear to be known, and haven’t been fixed. I recently had a fantastic run while on a break at work, earning multiple achievements and unlocking new cards, vouchers, and growing my collection significantly. But, because it didn’t occur on my home network (apparently), all my achievements were rescinded after the run, nothing it said I unlocked is actually unlocked, and I’m left feeling very disheartened. I love the game but don’t really feel like sinking time into it if I’m limited by where I’m allowed to play and save progress? It feels bizarre and frustrating, and I’m disappointed.
2025-02-04
Doesn't always track wins, and reinstalling the app deletes all progress despite cloud save
For starters, this game is FUN. I have only played for a few weeks and am hooked. The gameplay is absolutely amazing.
However, I had an issue today where I completed a run and unlocked a new joker, yet in my collection this was not reflected. I found a post online that some others had success reinstalling the app. As the game has automatic "Cloud Saves" this seemed like a fairly innocent thing to try.
However, upon reinstalling the app, ALL of my weeks of progress was gone. Upon doing more research, this appears to be a common issue for a while now. I'm also looking to upgrade my phone soon and am worried that any progress I make won't transfer to the new phone. This bug completely crushes the confidence I had in the game as something to continuously invest time into, and it makes me not want to play anymore.
2025-02-01
Excellent game but some bugs still need fixing
So the title says it all and I’ll try to be brief. Didn’t want to make a reddit account or something but thought I’d use this opportunity to tell you about a bug you might not be aware of. The Wheel is interacting with Oops All Sixes despite The Wheel not being worded as a chance or probability at all. If this isn’t a bug then you need to change the wording on The Wheel. I also have a feeling that some of the probabilities in general need to be fixed but I might still be mad about the Cavendish that went extinct on me after ONE HAND today…
Also if there are any plans to add jokers in the future I’d love one that lets you make straights with wrap-around aces. I’ve heard people say something 7-focused would be good too, maybe retriggering them if they’re lucky cards?
2025-01-25
Yup. 5 stars
Just when I think everything has been done when it comes to apps and games. There's not a fresh idea to be had anywhere in the world, much less and the completely over populated with a junk App Store… And developers just regurgitating somebody else's idea… Then comes along this game… It's so fresh and so fun and instantly challenging… And it's almost so simple that you could actually do it with your own deck of cards until they start adding all these multi suppliers and planet cards and cosmic cards and galaxies things and it just takes it to a whole new level of fun it's truly truly one of the best games I've ever played but without a doubt far away the best game to come out of the last five years just because of the simplicity and the refreshing take on two very old games. Poker. And solitaire
2025-01-21
If you are hesitant to buy read this!
I know that this game says that it’s “Poker meets Solitaire” but that statement doesn’t do it justice. I was a little hesitant to buy the game because the preview didn’t catch my attention. I saw the reviews and decided to buy it. Upon playing, it was mostly like “Poker meets a rouge-like”to me. Each run has a type of deck you can choose (it’s still a 52 card deck) BUT the color gives you a different effect. Red gives an extra discard to your standard discard amount, blue gives you an extra turn, etc. The more you play the more crazy effects you’ll get with your decks, and your Jokers. Each run starts off like a rouge-like, No stats, everything is slow, but as time goes on you’ll get better cards, better point multipliers, and better jokers. The jokers have tons of effects that you can unlock and build into how you enjoy playing (pairs, two pairs, straight, full house, etc). I bought it yesterday and was hooked, I played for hours on end without getting bored. Plus the music is fantastic! Highly recommend playing with earbuds or with the sound on.
2025-01-11
Great game, awful cloud save feature
This game is great and super fun when it works. I have only ever played the game on my phone, was planning on buying the steam version to play on pc but not anymore after a bug happened erasing my progress. I’d love to recommend this game to others but I just can’t seeing as some of the hardest unlocks in the game disappear at the drop of a hat. Earlier I was playing a round of Balatro and before starting I was in an area with spotty reception so it said “cloud save disabled” so I don’t think much about it and play the game. Turns out I have my best run so far, reaching ante 12 and scoring 150,000,000 chips in one hand on black stake difficulty! The dopamine and sense of accomplishment I felt was almost unrivaled. Continuing into endless mode, I didn’t have the score to beat ante 12 and lost to the 600,000,000 chips small blind, game over, no big deal because I unlocked lots of new stuff and the next stake difficulty! Upon returning to the main menu, however, I find that somewhere in the 25+ rounds and 12 antes my phone picked up service and the cloud save overrides the entire profile save. The Petroglyph voucher is still locked even though I reached ante 12 and the joker for scoring 100m chips in one hand is still locked. I unlocked like 4 jokers and 2 vouchers and beat black stake difficulty but NOPE! it’s all gone because of a horribly designed and implemented cloud save feature. I paid $10 for this game and a god awful cloud save feature ruining my progress leaves a bad taste in my mouth. This whole game is centered around meta progression and unlocks but it’s all gone. No options in game to override/replace the cloud save with local save, it’s all just one worthless inaccurate save now. But hey, at least I can use the handy “unlock all” button the devs included to unlock everything and disable all achievements and/or sense of accomplishment I may have derived from playing the game, right?
2025-01-04
Addictive app (but watch out for bugs)
Unless you hate card games, you’re going to love Balatro. A compelling app and well worth your money. Easy to learn, but with hidden complexities that reward deep thought. The Reddit and Discord communities are a great source of advanced strategy tips if you find yourself fully Jimbofied.
One frustration: Balatro is currently plagued by annoying bugs that often fail to save items you’ve discovered or stakes you’ve defeated. Don’t get too attached to your wins until these issues are resolved.
But Balatro is still one of the best bargains on the App Store today. No subscriptions or microtransactions. A single one-time payment grants access to all the digital chips and virtual money you’ll ever need.
What are you waiting for? Buy it already!
2024-12-29
Absolutely earns the hype!
This game is a gobsmacking innovation, on a level with Slay the Spire. “Poker meets solitaire” is a terrible description; it’s so much more than that. It’s a card based roguelike that gets everything right.
It’s complex and deep, but never overwhelms you. There’s a lot going on, but the learning curve is utterly painless. You’ll know enough to win in your first few playthroughs, but you’ll discover more and more subtleties over time. As your skill improves, the challenge scales with you. There are always new goals to chase, but you are in complete control of what to try and when, and how difficult (or not) you want your game to be. And while winning is satisfying, Balatro achieves the highest virtue a roguelike can aspire to — it’s great fun even when you lose.
When I saw Balatro on the PC Gamer top 10 of all time list, I thought, B.S. No card game belongs on that list. I was wrong. The universal gushing and five star reviews are totally legit. It’s the best game you never thought you’d like, and the more you play, the truer that becomes.
2024-12-29
Addicting, easy to learn, hours of fun
I cannot get enough of this game, I'll get off the game then immediately want to go again to try to win a run. I think what makes it so addicting are the virtually infinite ways this game could be played, along with the alure of upgrading and numbers. You can choose to play though the game to unlock stuff, or if you want you can just play with everything that's available without having to unlock everything. I'll say playing to unlock gives you more of a goal to work towards. My ONE complaint is that I wish you could save progress across platforms since I play on my PC as well, but I see that it will be added in an update soon.
2024-12-13
Fun but LOTS of frustrating bugs [Fixed]
The game is just as fun as the Steam version, but the iOS version has tons of save file flakiness. Winning unseeded runs not counting for progress, unlocks disappearing, having to re-click the (!) in the unlocks repeatedly… would be 5 stars if it worked like the Steam version does!
Edited 2 stars to 1: The bugs just make this unusable.
Some of the glitchiness I’ve encountered: Profile name keeps reverting to P1 (although renaming P2 sticks.) Winning runs not recorded. Constantly spammed with notices that I have unlocked the Blue Deck… while playing the Blue Deck. Spammed with notices that I’ve unlocked jokers even after unlocking those jokers. Cards I’ve played not showing up in Collection. Cards in Collection keep having a (!) put on them to show that they’re new, even after tapping them multiple times. Doing that one thing enough times to unlock that secret thing didn’t unlock it. Cards and tags that I’ve played not showing in the Collection. Blinds not showing up in Collection. Tried deleting app in order to re-download it and see if it would fix things; the pop up notice said that my cloud save would not be deleted… but my cloud save was deleted and I lost all progress.
Edit 1 star to 5; Updated iOS and all apps, including the Friends of Jimbo 3 patch, and now the save file appears to be working correctly! Not sure which bug it was since they both updated at the same time, but I can finally play.
2024-11-24
Progress doesn’t save.
I spent hours playing this game after buying it yesterday and I finally won a run on the red deck, all the achievements showed up saying I won my first run and I unlocked a new deck. I go and check my account and it says I still have 0 wins and nothing is unlocked. I check Game Center and I can see that I have the achievement for winning a run, so why isn’t it reflected in the app? How can you make a game so fun and addictive and yet just have such an awful system for saving progress? I’ve read some posts online with tons of other people having the same experience. For a $10 mobile game it’s ridiculous. And what’s even more, these posts I read were from a month and a half ago, meaning they STILL haven’t fixed this issue. Really disappointing and needs to be fixed asap by the devs, when I spend a long time on a run just for it to not save is ridiculous.
2024-11-02
Disappointed with paid version
Recently played this on Apple Arcade and loved it, but recognized that it’s a somewhat restricted version. So I bought the game thinking options and challenges would open up well only a few things did such as jokers etc. But things like the very first challenge which says and I quote “Win a run with at least 5 different decks to unlock Challenge mode 0/5” even when you do this it never opens. It shows an option for difficulty to start your run but the arrows are blacked out. I assumed there might be several levels of difficulty starting easier and moving up which would be great for those of us just learning the game and strategy. Am finding that some of the uncommon jokers you buy don’t do what they are supposed to. Also it’s supposed to sync between iPad and phone it doesn’t. While this has the potential to be an outstanding game and 9.99 is not expensive I should have just stuck with the Apple Arcade + version. It’s getting frustrating never being able to advance past the early rounds.
2024-10-19
Excellent game; very obscure bug I experienced
This game is incredible, super varied, mega addictive, infinitely replayable, and ridiculously satisfying. After a ten dollar paywall to buy the game, you aren’t bombarded with ads or microtransactions. Anyone who likes poker and roguelikes should give this game a go.
One very nuanced and obscure issue I experienced was that, when using the screen mirroring to play on my MacBook, I couldn’t click a single button on startup, even when the game is resetted multiple times. Not a deal breaker for me but I was hoping I’d be able to play conveniently on my Mac. I understand screen mirroring is brand new to iOS and macOS so it makes sense that it might not work at the moment. If that issue could be fixed one day I’ll be very happy with this game. Five stars!
2024-10-16
Lost hundreds of hours of progress
This game was objectively fun. It is a genius dopamine rush and quite unique. The developer clearly knows how to make a viral hit. However, the only real point to the game is to unlock things. I had played for hundreds of hours on my phone. I had nearly unlocked the full “collection” and completed 15/20 challenges. Then, I wanted to see how the game looked on the iPad. What a terrible decision. I’ve now lost everything, any and all progress. iOS Gamecenter happily logs me in and tells me I’ve already earned the majority of the achievements. Balatro thinks I’ve never unlocked a single thing and never won with a single deck. This is a game that centers entirely on unlocks and progress, but fails to store your data with any degree of reliability or replicability. I will never play this game again. Play at your own risk and, if you do, be sure to only ever play on one device. This review was posted after version 1.1.15 was released which erroneously claims “Cloud save improvements”. I also filed a bug report with the developer and received this response:
“The developers are aware of the issue and are looking into why this is happening. Currently, there is not a way to restore individual profiles. In the meantime, I would suggest playing on one device.”
2024-10-10
Incredibly Fun and Enjoyable! but Eats Battery
If you are into Poker or Roguelikes (Binding of Isaac for example,) you will most likely find Balatro to be a very interesting and fun. Jokers are like powerups for your deck and lead to a lot of fun interactions and interesting combos. Now with that being said, I feel the nature of how the game difficulty progresses ruins the expectation of experimentation. As to meet with the high antes you either need to set up the same powerful, but repetitive combos, or get very lucky, which leaves a very small window to mess with jokers as it becomes very quickly becomes punishing to do so.
This does not ruin the game in the slightest, just my ability to explore it further.
I own this game on PC as well and very much enjoy the interface changes made for mobile and I actually find myself trying to drag cards in the PC version because I’ve become accustomed to dragging them here. Highly recommend for mobile. My only gripe for mobile is for some reason, this game makes my phone very hot and eats battery very fast. Like it’s taking a LOT of processing power to play. My phone usually has a long battery life but to lose 20% or more on a single run of Balatro is kind of unfortunate. If this gets fixed, it’s an easy 5 star.
2024-10-08
Balatro is the bomb!
second run with green deck i found an early joker- ceremonial dagger. it provided the scale to get past ante 5ish, and at the very end i pulled a black hole out of a spectral card. bought every planet card i saw, most up to rank 3-4. start of ante 8 i decided to skip both blinds and go straight to the boss, hadn’t skipped yet but i thought my build was ready. flush of hearts for my final hand squeaked me over the finish line for the first win.
been on slay the spire since 2018 and hearthstone before that. last year i played inscryption on PS5 because it free on PS5. got the platinum that same weekend and picked it up on steam because it was so good i couldn’t sit right playing it for free. only heard about balatro recently during the buzz from the ios release, decided to pick it up this morning. took me 3ish hours for this win, thank you developers for making such a well polished release. and now i’m going to see what the meta is and beat some more decks!
seed: 1KBWYNHN
2024-10-07
Disappointed with iPhone Mirroring Lock – Needs Better
I love Balatro and enjoy playing it on my mobile, but I was disappointed to find out that the iPhone mirroring feature on Mac doesn't work with this game. While other apps and games mirror just fine, Balatro appears to have this feature locked. It seems like this is done to encourage users to buy the game again on Steam, which is frustrating.
As an indie game fan, I’m okay with supporting the developers by buying the game again. However, restricting a useful feature like mirroring, or not having cloud sync between Steam and mobile, feels unfair. I’d appreciate it if the developers would either enable game syncing across platforms or allow the iPhone mirroring to function properly. It’s disappointing that I’m forced to pay for Apple Arcade or buy the game again on Steam when this could be avoided by simply enabling the click/input feature on iPhone mirroring.
2024-10-04
Worth every cent.
I don’t normally write reviews and I’m not usually one to be into too many mobile games or even for that matter card games but this, there’s something about it that has an addictive and rewarding effect. I think the mix of elements of tarot and it’s design seem very fun and mysterious it’s not something that you’re too unfamiliar with, but just enough mystery to keep you wanting more. From the art, the classic pixel style art in remembrance of old Solitaire on Windows XP or Windows 98 it gives almost a nostalgic vibe as well as the music, hands-down probably the most entertaining card game that isn’t ordinary or some fake casino style solitaire style mobile game that pushes ads in your face. The pace of which the game and rounds run at as well is just perfect. Get those combos and get that reward system rewarded, you know that funny little center in your brain where you just want a little more? it hits all the right spots and it keeps you going, it’s amazing. Hands-down, 10 out of 10. Five stars, 100%.
2024-10-04
Best game on iOS
If you’re on the fence about spending 10 dollars, just buy it. While yes, it’s on mobile, it’s not a mobile game. The game is a very well made port of the PC version with no features hidden behind the hardware barrier. It’s 10 dollars and you get no ads and there are no micro transactions.
The gameplay is the perfect mix of luck and skill. You can win 99% of games on the hardest difficulty if you’re skilled enough, but without skill, you have luck to guide you through tough situations (or alternatively, completely leave you hopeless with no chance of winning).
Regardless of gameplay or playability, the game itself is overwhelming positive on steam. The difference is that PC players have much stricter ratings than mobile players. The fact this game has 5.0 on apple store (something rarely seen on games with 1k+ ratings) and a very high rating on steam proves how good the game is.
If you’ve read this far you are either the dev/publisher (hello), or you are debating on getting the game. You should get it, you won’t be disappointed. There is a learning curve but it just makes the game better.
2024-09-30
Balatro on Mobile, Dream Come True!
I love Balatro on my PC, it works really well on mobile. Need to waste some time in a very satisfying and rewarding way? Play Balatro. My local casino kicked me out for learning how to county cards after playing Balatro (this is a joke Apple, there is no gambling in Balatro). The ONLY gripe I have is when you start a new game, your last chip selection gets set back to white stake. On the PC version, it’s whatever stake you last ran on. This would be a very welcome change. I always start white stake on accident and think I’m rolling until I notice I’m not on the difficulty I want to be on. Would also LOVE to see a portrait mode implemented. Probably my biggest wish for the mobile game.
2024-09-28
Fantastic game, Addictive Port
What else can be said? It's Balatro. I loved it on PC, and said if it ever came to mobile, my life would be solely dedicated to this game. Well here it is. As great as ever.
There are a few things I'd wanna touch on though that I've found that slightly hamper the experience a bit.
One: on PC there's this thing you can do where you can right-click to deselect all currently selected cards. Either I don't know how to do it via touch controls, or it isn't there. Either way, I'm too used to that as a feature, and would love to see it. Funny thing about it though: if you connect a Bluetooth mouse to your iOS device (I did this on my iPad), and used right-click in game, it works exactly like the PC version! It'd be a one for one control scheme like the PC version, if it weren't for the drag controls. That aside, I'd like a way to deselect all cards at once rather than just tapping them one by one.
Two: the other thing that would make this godlike is some kinda save sync system between the other versions of the game. That is a pie in the sky kinda request, and I understand that would be incredibly difficult. I did buy this game fully expecting to have to start over though, and I didn't mind. But it still would be awesome.
All in all, this is a great game that I already found myself way too addicted to, and having it in the palm of my hand everywhere I go is not helping matters, whatsoever.
(Also, not sure if this has been fixed yet, but the achievements aren't unlocking!!!)
2024-09-27
Not Joking Around!
Balatro is a game about scoring bigger numbers with poker hands. It’s incredibly balanced, no single strategy feels completely broken when scoring. Even when you win the game, the hands keep coming as you collect more jokers and other cards that can extend your run. It’s absolutely worth the asking price, because you’ll want to play this game again and again. I was waiting at the airport, and I didn’t even realize that my flight got delayed and my group was already boarding. Very few games have accomplished this from my experience. Seriously, I can’t think of anything about this game I’d change. The only bad thing about it is that when you play it, you might forget that you still have work/class going on.
2024-09-26
Just One More Hand…
I’ve put a lot of time into Balatro’s Steam release, and have to say it’s one of the most unique and addicting experiences out there.
Balatro is a rogue-like poker game, where you play poker hands to score points and beat an ever increasing point goal. The twist comes in the form of the game’s many gameplay mechanics, such as Tarot Cards, Card Modifiers, or the extremely prevalent Jokers. These Jokers modify the gameplay in various ways, such as increasing the amount of points gained by face cards, or by making it where ALL cards are considered face cards.
If you’re looking for a game to play that can kill time while not requiring a lot of effort, Balatro is for you. It’s easy to learn, yet hard to master.
2024-09-26
it’s everything I hoped it would be
Balatro was wildly popular on PC, but mobile — and especially iPad — is where it always belonged. Addictive yet somehow calming, it achieves replayability only matched by games like Slay the Spire. A compelling rogue-lite is joined by surprisingly deep mechanics and play that, though it draws inspiration from poker, is at the same time utterly removed from the specific set of probabilities that governs its play.
Best of all, it is blessedly free of advertisement and microtransactions. Easily worth twice the asking price.
I’ve experienced no bugs and the settings provide a surprising number of options to match the game’s behavior to your preferences. There is not a single thing about this app that made me regret my purchase in the slightest; just happy surprise after happy surprise. Please stop reading reviews and just buy it.
2024-09-26
Amazing, but takes getting used to as a port
This game is just amazing. I’ve been playing for nigh on three months now since I got it on my PC. I was super excited for the mobile port (though my performance in school was not quite as excited) and it’s actually really good! Since it doesn’t have crossplay abilities, I immediately turned on “unlock all” so I could have it in my pocket as a sort of quick fix. It’s been taking me a little bit of time to adjust to the new controls and I’m sure it will be hard to hop back on it on the computer, but that’s to be expected. Great game, definitely recommend turning on increased suit contrast on a smaller screen though.
2024-09-26
Productivity Be Damned!
This game is an exact port of the hit PC game that launched in February. I have over 350 hours played on that game, and I feel I have experienced every gameplay level of the game.
This game takes the casino classic “video poker” and injects it with a litany of variables including ways to add, remove, and modify card values, suits, and bonuses, a “Jokers” mechanic that allows for even further potential, and an additional set of “new” card ranks as a result of the changes. The goal for each round is to get or exceed a certain number of chips by playing a certain number of hands. Hand rank decides the value of the hands in addition to the cards used. Different hand ranks have different values: for instance, a flush is worth more chips and mult than a pair is (before upgrading hand rank payouts, which is yet another variable) so that will score higher. A general rule of thumb is to have a good balance of both chips and “mult” (which is the rate the chips in the hand earned are multiplied by to get your final hand value). This game is one that can seem daunting after first, however it is extremely addictive when properly understood. There is potential for extremely high totals, and the sound effects and graphics make the journey to please Jimbo extremely satisfying. Kudos to the developers for being able to squeeze the most recent version of the game in, that added collaborations with popular games such as Among Us and The Witcher franchise.
Between the combined of tarot cards that modify existing cards, the different passives for each deck, and the creative challenge modes, you will be hard pressed to find a game that can keep you more occupied.
To the players: May your Michels be Gros and your Wheels Fortunate.
2024-09-26
Love Balatro but..
I love this game on my computer I have been anticipating it on my phone and I will say it is an exact copy of it from pc so for that I give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. However I dislike how small things are and I was really hoping for a portrait style version of the game. Something I can play one handed not having to tilt my phone and be super obvious I’m playing a phone game, maybe I was a little spoiled from another “joker card game” on iOS while waiting for balatro. Overall the game runs smooth but I was really hoping for a little different interface. I also hoped to be able to link my pc account so I could transfer stats and unlocks without starting completely fresh. I feel like the 3 stars is valid for what I was hoping for but I don’t want this to be a detourance for new players you will love the game I promise you! Devs please consider adding an option for portrait mode for the game to allow users to pick which they prefer in settings. I know it’s a little more work but I guarantee it will pay off in the future.