Summary
Balatrohas revealed interest in partnering with a highly popular action-RPG,Path of Exile 2, which rolled out in early access recently. In the past,Balatrohas teamed up with various popular games, includingCyberpunk 2077,Among Us,Vampire Survivors, and more to bring themed content for its players.
Crafted by a solo dev known as LocalThunk,Balatrois a remarkable indie game success story. The roguelike deck-building title shot up in popularity this year, after first releasing in February 2024. So far, it has sold over 3.5 million copies across console, PC, and mobile platforms. On top of that, the Playstack-published game has been on an award-winning spree with a particularly notable sweep taking place at The Game Awards 2024, where it was recognized as the Best Debut Indie Game, Best Indie Game, and Best Mobile Game. Recently,Balatroteased the possibility of collaborating withPath of Exile 2, one of 2024’s most popular titles that was recently in the newsfor “kicking out” Elon Musk from a game.
On Twitter,Balatroannounced being among the top-five most played Steam Deck titles, alongside other major hits such asStardew Valley,Baldur’s Gate 3,Path of Exile 2, andVampire Survivors. The tweet pointed out how each of these games' developers were “friends of Jimbo” – which is also the namesakeseries ofBalatroupdatescontaining game collaborations – exceptPath of Exile 2dev Grinding Gear Games. With this, the widely acclaimed game more or less confirmed interest in possibly collaborating withPath of Exile 2in the future. Also, it’s worth noting that each of the aforementioned games from the Steam Deck’s top-five list has previously partnered withBalatro, exceptBaldur’s Gate 3. However, Larian Studios, the team behindBaldur’s Gate 3, still fits the bill of being a “friend of Jimbo” through another title,Divinity: Original Sin 2, whose themed content was the latest to make its way into the card game.
Balatro Reveals Interest in a Path of Exile 2 Crossover, Could Bring More Themed Cards
IfBalatro’s plans for aPath of Exile 2crossover materialize, fans could expect to receive cosmetic additions, similar to those found in the previous Friends of Jimbo updates. For instance, the game’sWitcher 3crossover brought card designsinspired by the latter’s characters, such as Geralt, Yennefer, and the like. While such an update doesn’t affectBalatrogameplay-wise, it offers certain players more incentive, thanks to fresh card designs.
Apart from celebrating award wins, LocalThunk has also recently been expressing hisdisagreement withBalatro’s PEGI rating. Interestingly, the developer has called attention to a specific game with microtransactions receiving a kid-friendly rating as opposed to his own game getting an adult-only rating. However, it currently doesn’t seem things are going to change on that front for the indie game anytime soon.
Balatro
WHERE TO PLAY
Balatro is a poker-inspired roguelike deck builder all about creating powerful synergies and winning big.The poker roguelike. Balatro is a hypnotically satisfying deckbuilder where you play illegal poker hands, discover game-changing jokers, and trigger adrenaline-pumping, outrageous combos.Combine valid poker hands with unique Joker cards in order to create varied synergies and builds. Earn enough chips to beat devious blinds, all while uncovering hidden bonus hands and decks as you progress. You’re going to need every edge you can get in order to reach the boss blind, beat the final ante and secure victory
