Balatro Has Broken Massive Sales Record, & The Devs Cannot Be More Thrilled About The Title's Success

Published Jan 21, 2025

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On the eve of its release anniversary, indie card game Game of the Year nom. It's been widely praised for its engaging, poker-based roguelike gameplay, the myriad ways it allows players to meld cards, Jokers, and hands to create an unstoppable high-scoring engine.

And Balatro's been rewarded many times over for its innovative brilliance - five million times, to be exact. According to a post on the official Balatro X (formerly Twitter) today, Balatro has achieved the major milestone of five million units sold. The post expresses nothing but gratitude for millions of Balatro fans, especially those who purchased it after seeing it featured at the Game Awards, where it earned three accolades, including Best Indie Game.

Balatro Hits 5 Million Units Sold

How Balatro Became An Overnight Hit

It's hard to express in words just how surprising Balatro was. It came out of nowhere, but I hearing excellent things about it before it was even released. It seemed every single person who had tried it had something positive to say about Balatro, or was so busy playing it they couldn't even make the time to comment.

And all that good press counted for something, as Balatro was already profitable just an hour after it was released, and soared to a $1 million gross within eight hours, according to a Game Developer interview with publisher Playstack. It was selling like hotcakes, and people couldn't get enough of Balatro. The praise only ramped up with further updates, and reached a fever pitch with Balatro's Game of the Year nod at The Game Awards 2024.

After The Game Awards, Balatro Has Picked Up Steam Once Again

Indie Games' Moment In The Sun

I'll be honest: I was really rooting for Balatro going into The Game Awards. I knew it wouldn't win GOTY, especially after it took Best Indie, but I had hope. Not that Astro Bot didn't deserve its win, but I really wanted to see an indie game take home the gold. As much as I love big triple-A spectaculars, many of my most evocative, unique, and memorable video game experiences have come from indies. Plus, I had been under Balatro's spell since day one, so I had some skin in the game.

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Of course, it didn't win GOTY, but its prominent appearance at The Game Awards apparently had a different effect: like every awards show, it boosted sales of all the games featured, even those that didn't win. The celebratory post makes a point of thanking players who took a chance on Balatro after seeing it at The Game Awards, noting their role in its massive success.

Finally, the post went on to encourage players to try more indie games, especially if Balatro was their first. Famously Animal Well game of the year and granting it the "Golden Thunk" award. It's a great thing to do with such a big platform, and proves Balatro's success couldn't have happened to a more deserving person.

Sources: Balatro/X, Game Developer