Balatro was recently in the news after some versions of the game were removed from digital stores due to a ratings kerfuffle that is still ongoing. However, that setback hasn’t stopped the popular roguelike deck-builder from selling more than 500,000 copies across all platforms in under two weeks.
Released last month on Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and PC, Balatro is a wonderful digital card game that uses poker mechanics and hands as the foundation for a strange, but fun roguelike all about earning massive combos using power-ups and special cards. And now the game has hit a big sales milestone.
According to publisher Playstack Games, on March 6 Balatro hit the 500,000 copies solid mark in just ten days. In a tweet announcing the news, the publisher added: “Thank you for your amazing support – we’re beyond grateful!”
This is an impressive number for a relatively small game from a small publisher about shuffling around cards to make poker hands. But it’s even more impressive when you remember that for the last few days, the game has not been available from the Switch eShop in Europe. That’s because the game’s PEGI rating changed overnight, surprising the publisher and leading to the game being removed from digital stores.
Playstack is continuing to work to get Balatro back on the eShop in countries like Germany and the UK. It recently said it expects the game to return to all shops before March 9. Hopefully, it happens soon as this is definitely a perfect game for Nintendo’s aging handheld hybrid.
Personally, I’ve not been able to stop playing Balatro since its release. I even bought another copy of it on Xbox so I could play it more easily in my living room. It’s on my Steam Deck. And I can’t wait to buy it again when it (hopefully) arrives on iOS and Android one day. I’m Balatro-pilled and I don’t care.
Balatro is out now on Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and (in some countries) Switch.
