{"id":1239455,"date":"2026-02-27T07:36:04","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T07:36:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.polygon.com\/?p=609808"},"modified":"2026-02-27T07:36:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T07:36:05","slug":"balatros-steam-summer-sale-discount-is-the-safest-bet-you-can-make","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/balatros-steam-summer-sale-discount-is-the-safest-bet-you-can-make\/","title":{"rendered":"Balatro’s Steam Summer Sale discount is the safest bet you can make"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Balatro<\/em><\/a> is one of the (many, many<\/em>) games marked down for Steam\u2019s annual summer sale<\/a>. Take it from me: Picking up Balatro<\/em> on sale \u2014\u00a0no matter how big or small the discount \u2014 is one of the safest bets you can make.<\/p>\n

As someone who couldn\u2019t tell a flush from a full house<\/a> but could rattle off every Pok\u00e9mon TCG Pocket<\/em><\/a> mechanic by heart, I only gave Balatro<\/em> a shot because it cleaned up at The Game Awards in 2024<\/a>. Balatro<\/em>, a card-based roguelike that lets you play god with the rules of poker, is the brainchild of solo dev LocalThunk. Despite its modest origins, Balatro exploded in popularity following its February 2024 release, thanks to a mix of glowing reviews, viral gameplay, and \u201cjust one more run I don\u2019t care that it\u2019s 3 a.m.\u201d playstyle. Initially released on consoles and Windows PC, it received ports for mobile phones in September 2024, meaning, like Fortnite<\/em> and Minecraft<\/em>, it\u2019s one of those Everywhere Games.<\/p>\n

I wanted to try Balatro<\/em> so bad, I burned my entire three-month free trial of Apple Arcade on it. (Balatro+<\/em>, an iOS-exclusive version of the game, was available with a subscription.) It quickly consumed me, and I couldn\u2019t put it down. Whether it was quick sessions or marathon runs longer than a movie, I found myself playing Balatro<\/em> more than any other game I owned. I even threw money away purchasing it on multiple platforms, something I could\u2019ve avoided if I\u2019d just picked it up on Steam from the start. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

After three quick months, I realized my free subscription had expired, and I\u2019d been paying for Apple Arcade just to play Balatro<\/em><\/a>+. I decided to buy the paid version of the game outright from the App Store for $9.99, but soon began to worry that all my progress wouldn\u2019t transfer over. After booting up the game, I was elated to see all my progress from Balatro+<\/em> made it to the paid version, and I could pick up where I left off. But once the game was up as the PlayStation Plus<\/a> free game for May, I quickly realized it didn\u2019t matter whether my progress carried over or not, because here I was, starting fresh on a whole new platform anyway.<\/p>\n

Soon after, I picked up a MacBook Air, and alongside sneaking in some sessions of Baldur\u2019s Gate 3<\/em><\/a>, I wanted to play some rounds of Balatro<\/em> on it too. Unfortunately, I realized I couldn\u2019t play the paid version on it; you have to play Balatro+<\/em> with Apple Arcade. If I wanted to play Balatro<\/em> on my MacBook without a subscription, I would have to double-dip by buying it again for Steam.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s strange. I\u2019m still trying to unlock everything, but I\u2019ve hit a wall trying to unlock every chip with the red and blue Anaglyph deck, and I\u2019m rage-quitting more now than I ever have before. But no matter how upset I get, it doesn\u2019t keep me away from the game for long. Even the creator, who said he suffered a mental health crisis<\/a> during the final six months of development, is still playing the game himself, having only just<\/em> attained 100% completion<\/a>. <\/p>\n

As of this writing, Balatro<\/em> is discounted by 10%<\/a> for the Steam Summer Sale, which runs until July 10. Given how accessible Steam libraries are<\/a> these days, I\u2019d say it\u2019s about as safe a bet you can make.<\/p>\n

But who am I kidding? We all know I’ll follow this game to whatever platform it ends up on.<\/p>\n

Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Balatro is one of the (many, many) games marked down for Steam\u2019s annual summer sale. Take it from me: Picking up Balatro on sale \u2014\u00a0no matter how big or small the discount \u2014 is one of the safest bets you can make. As someone who couldn\u2019t tell a flush from a full house but could rattle off every Pok\u00e9mon TCG Pocket mechanic by heart, I only gave Balatro a shot because it cleaned up at The Game Awards in 2024. Balatro, a card-based roguelike that lets you play god with the rules of poker, is the brainchild of solo dev LocalThunk. Despite its modest origins, Balatro exploded in popularity following its February 2024 release, thanks to a mix of glowing reviews, viral gameplay, and \u201cjust…<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1239456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1239455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-polygon"],"yoast_head":"\nBalatro’s Steam Summer Sale discount is the safest bet you can make | Arcader News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Balatro is one of the (many, many) games marked down for Steam\u2019s annual summer sale. 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