Summary

  • Balatro is a highly rated roguelike deck-building game available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
  • The game has received overwhelming praise for its addictive gameplay and clever mechanics.
  • Balatro has earned a 92 overall rating and is one of the top-rated new game releases of 2024.

Roguelike deck-building game Balatro is currently one of the highest-rated games of the year, earning an incredible 92 overall rating. Anyone interested in checking the game out after learning about its impressively high review scores should note that Balatro is readily available to play across PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X, so it has a presence on almost every modern gaming platform.

Developed by LocalThunk and published by Playstack, Balatro hit the scene on February 20. It combines poker with elements typical of the roguelike and deck-building genres. Balatro players are tasked with putting together real-life Poker hands combined with unique cards with special abilities. It seems like an odd concept on the face of things, but Balatro has proven doubters wrong with the glowing reception it's enjoyed so far.

Balatro Best Tarot Cards Logo
Balatro: 15 Best Tarot Cards, Ranked

In Balatro, the effective use of Tarot cards is essential. These are the best Tarot cards in the game, along with some tips for how to use them.

By 

Balatro reviews have been overwhelmingly positive since its release, with reviewers heaping praise on its addictive gameplay, clever mechanics, and satisfying challenge. 22 critic reviews have been counted for Balatro so far on the review aggregate site OpenCritic, leaving the game with a 92 overall rating at the time of this writing. This makes it the second highest-rated game of 2024 so far, just behind the upcoming Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

Highest-Rated Games of 2024 So Far

  • Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth - 93
  • Balatro - 92
  • Tekken 8 - 90
  • The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered - 90
  • Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - 89

There are times when there is a disconnect between the critic and user reviews for a game, but that can't be said about Balatro. Not only has Balatro earned near-universal acclaim from critics, but it is currently enjoying an "Overwhelmingly Positive" rating from Steam users as well. Now, it's entirely possible that Balatro's review score will shift in one direction or another as more reviews are counted, but it seems like the game will remain one of the top-rated new game releases of 2024 without much trouble.

Balatro's incredible debut makes it one of four games with a 90 or higher overall rating released in 2024 so far. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth reviews have been high enough to secure a 93 overall rating for that game, while Tekken 8 and The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered trail behind Balatro with 90 overall scores.

2023 was a banner year for high-quality new game releases, and it will be interesting to see if 2024 can top it by the time it's all said and done. 2024 has a long way to go if it hopes to match last year's offerings, but games like Balatro have ensured that it's getting off on the right foot.

Rating block community and brand ratings Image
Balatro Tag Page Cover Art
Balatro
Display card tags widget Display card system widget
Display card community and brand rating widget
Display card open critics widget Display card main info widget
Released
February 20, 2024
Display card main info widget end Display card media widget start Display card media widget end

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION
DIGITAL
Checkbox: control the expandable behavior of the extra info

ESRB
E10+ For Everyone 10+ // Gambling Themes
Developer(s)
LocalThunk
Publisher(s)
Playstack
Genre(s)
Strategy, Digital Card Game, Roguelike