Great document! What a HIDDEN GEM dev, really thanks to him created this game, never know my life needed such game to spark up my gaming addiction again 🥰
@@Jan12700 Kinda, I have used it for a while, and skip and stopped it. In terms of what you can meal prep yourself: YES its a scam, in the sense that its like 10x the price on small orders for one meal. The only way factor makes sense, is if you order 2weeks of meals or more (more, and have a deep freeze because you will be freezing their "fresh never frozen" offerings to make it worth it) and rotate the meals out 3-4 meals at a time per person buying for. You gotta pause since they wanna get you on the weekly delivery, and make you spend absurd prices. If you get it once a month, with all the meals you need, no discount, and you freeze and thaw, it turns out pretty damn good, and just a bit more than frozen dinner prices. All that said, I'm still gonna just go the meal prep route, since it means I dont get surprised when I forgot to skip a week. So yeah. I don't recommend it weekly. Optimally monthly big delivery so you pick all you want for the month, and freeze/thaw/reheat. It is good though, better than frozen dinners by a large margin.
Imagine being hired by a random guy on fiverr to make a soundtrack for his game, making a couple of songs for it and a year later it’s played by an orchestra at The Game Awards medley alongside music of Black Myth Wukong, Metaphor ReFantazio and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. This is indeed a surreal timeline.
@@pikabuzz1 I don’t think so. I just being curious if that fiverr music composer ever come out and say something about their products being part of something big.
No expectations, no adapting to the market, just a guy making something that seemed cool. This is why we love indie titles, the passion behind just making something has resulted in some of the greatest games of all time
Indie devs aren't afraid to just do what they want, innovate where needed, and take risks. I'm a firm believer that's a bit reason why so many are pure gas. Sure, loads don't go anywhere, but the environment allowing and even encouraging such risk or wanton choices has great benefit too.
Not all indie titles are created equally, but the indie gaming scene will always be the heart and soul of the industry. Not all of the big "AAA" games are slop, but they're typically working from preexisting formulas to maximize profits instead of innovating and exploring fresh new ideas.
Localthunk being only dimly aware of deck building games, yet releasing a deck builder thats going to cast a shadow over the genre for years to come is incredibly funny
This is a surprisingly common pattern across creative endeavours, being an outsider means you're not clouded by tropes and preconceptions, and can make something truly fresh.
Balatro isn't really a deck building game though. Nearly all of the strategy/gameplay comes from the Joker and Shop mechanics. The actual deck building mechanics range from never-mattering to slightly shifting the odds of what you roll.
@@La0bouchere kid named Idol: kid named Baron: kid named Steel Joker: kid named Glass Joker: kid named any non-common Joker in the entire fucking game:
Important thing I think is worth mentioning here. The dev recently posted on Twitter that when he had his will made he had a thing in it that specifically stated in legalese that Balatro would never ever ever be used for gambling related stuff no matter what happens. Like nothing being associated with casinos or slot machines etc.
Funny story the dev posted recently on twitter. At first he had not so many jokers. But the publisher in a called said the wrong number of jokers.. and instead of correcting them, he started drawing and working to reach the number the publisher said in that call.
The mobile version is a fucking amazing port too, the controls just make sense and using the touchscreen feels intuitive since the game is mouse controlled anyways. Only thing I wish was for there to be a way to deselect all cards (right click on pc)
balatro is like a little pocket dimension for me to chill in. i have it on my phone so if i'm dealing with a flare of awful medical issues i can just curl up in bed and play a few runs while i wait for meds to work or things to calm down enough for me to get back to life. its not infuriating for me when i lose a run. i just go 'oh okay i should do this or that' and move on. the music is right up my alley too for when i need to rest. its just so good.
Yeah localthunk really nailed the chill factor. I don’t get upset when I lose and I think that’s one of the factors in why it’s so addictive. Restarting the game feels like I never stopped.
@no.no.4680 The game is highly enticing to even watch other people play because it doesn't feel like the game is high tension in any sense, there's a goal, there's even an endless mode, but there's no big rushes or anything that feels unfair. It's the epitome of healthy game design, no gambling, and that's why it's highly addictive, it's fun and challenging and my god the ui and accessibility to new players is so heavily appreciated.
Tbf that guy made the most fire soundtrack Iv heard to a game since Epic Battle Fastasy 5 (just check it out, its flash gaming at its best). And personally, I do not put game music on that level easy. If you are curious, sample some of the composer's work. Her alias is Phyrnna professionally. Love finding great little known artists like that.
The fact that Glen seamelessy integrated footage from The Game Awards that happened LAST NIGHT shows you how serious he takes his craft. I'm hitting the like button on this video SO HARD....
Played this one pretty close to the chest! I was lucky in predicting it would win every award it was nominated for except GOTY (although I think it deserves it) so I didn’t have to edit the script at least :P
During the demo stages he would always address feedback from people whether it was small or complicated, tell why he did that way or how he should do it better. The guy took feedback like a sponge and completely nailed everything.
Hey, thanks for the video. I've been gaming for about 45 years. Balatro is an absolute gem on par with the classics such as Pac-Man, Tetris, and Minecraft. It's great to know that the money I've spent (purchased the game on 3 different platforms) is going to a fellow who seems very level-headed, creative, humble, and dedicated to his craft. I wish Mr. LocalThunk all the best in dealing with the unexpected avalanche of attention his game has been getting. As a quiet person who loves to be self-absorbed in my own hobbies, I offer a rare combination of congratulations and sympathy.
My pleasure! LocalThunk deserves all the success. He was never after fame or money, but his sheer passion for the craft of developing games got him to where he is now.
@@thomasnguyen4427 1989 was a good year for console wars! Sega released the Genesis to compete against the aging NES, which was already 6 years old. Nintendo released the Game Boy in 1989, but didn't make a real response to Sega until the SNES came out in 1990-1991. There was also the TurboGrafx-16, which was a powerful console ( by 1989 standards) but it wasn't as popular as Nintendo or Sega's consoles. As for developers... Konami released Castlevania III in 1989, and Capcom had a big hit with Ghosts 'n' Ghouls. (Capcom's game "Street Fighter" had already been in the arcades for a couple of years by this point.) Nintendo's big 1989 games were Super Mario 3 and Zelda II. SquareSoft had already released two Final Fantasy games, and Enix had released three Dragon Quest games. Activision and Electronic Arts (EA) were also around and making games back then. Many of those older development studios aren't around anymore, or merged with other studios (like Bandai merging with Pac-Man's developer Namco to become Bandai-Namco, or SquareSoft merging with Enix to become SquareEnix.) ...You can look this stuff up online, of course. 🙂 I don't mind yapping about it, though. Those were good and memorable gaming years.
@@thomasnguyen4427Tetris was released in 1989. So was the original Sim City, DuckTales , Super Mario Land, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... Man, 1989 was a big year. Consoles back then were the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Game Boy, Sega Master System, Sega Genesis (Released in '88) and a bunch of PC-like platforms, like Amiga, MS-DOS and Commodore 64 (this was my first one, it used tape cassettes to store data. It took forever to load a program).
LocalThunk even made a claim in his will, that even after his death, Balatro IP will NEVER be used in a gambling/casino. He's just all around good dude. So nice to see Balatro and him succeed in this day and age.
Balatro instantly became one of my favorite games. The CRT filter is a genius move, it gives old poker machine vibes. Being able to make a crazy synergy with foil/polychrome jokers is extremely satisfying. One time I had a joker that retriggers all face cards with another joker that would turn each played face card into a gold card and finally a joker that made all cards count as face cards ... by the end of the run I had a full gold deck 😂
Once I had the all cards are face cards joker and the retrigger all played face cards joker, then I ran into the all face cards are drawn face down boss blind
I showed my dad the game as he was going to bed. He immediately loved it and just started saying “one more” every time we won a round for around 20 min lmao
The fact that it still receives criticism for being a "gambling game" and even had rating boards trying to restrict it goes to show the stupidity of people. People often justify gacha games as "not being real gambling" and allow children to play them despite having actual real money MTX gambling in them. Yet a game which has no gambling in it at all with either real or fake money but simply has the aesthetic of card games and the same hands as poker gets considered a "gambling game". What's next, is peggle also a gambling game because it copies japanese pachinko gambling machines? People also say "well it has RNG mechanics so that's gambling!" when the entire genre of roguelikes is RNG. Is D&D gambling? is MtG gambling? It's so stupid. People literally just see playing cards and think "that must be gambling!" and refuse all evidence to the contrary.
My wife has watched me play and always asks me if I’m gambling when she has seen gameplay. I legit think using the American dollar symbol just makes normal people think you are playing with real money. But I like the choice of using a real world currency for the game.
I developed a gambling habit over the last few months and fell behind in my budget by 1000$ plus. I’ve been trying to stop for weeks and downloaded this game just because I have wanted to play it. I found that it scratches that gambling itch without me losing real green dollars. It’s been a couple weeks since I’ve lost money and now I’m addicted to this game. It may not be a GAMBLING GAME but it’s definitely a game that helps a gambler.
it's funny to see this game was removed from stores for "gambling", but here in brazil, sporting bet basically took the entire country, once prohibited, it's basically legal, with ads on the internet and on open TV, anyway amazing video as always! keep it up.
It’s a strange situation and the ratings board seems to almost make arbitrary decisions as they initially agreed to give it a 3+ rating, only to change it a few months later. And thank you, glad you enjoyed the video!
A lot of people were assumed it's just a gambling card game even though the core of gambling is to bet something at first which Balatro has none, the chips are just score basically
Saying "Balatro is gambling" is like saying "every game with money to manage is gambling". 🤷♂️ Balatro is basically The Binding of Isaac with blinds instead of rooms and antes instead of levels.
That's the somewhat sad part to think about. For every one success story we all see, there must be dozens of passion projects, brilliant ideas, and masterful works out there that never reach the public eye.
Fellow gamedevs take note, the reason he found success can be found two minutes into the video. People seem to think there's two camps of making a soulless consumer product, or making a game for yourself - but there's a third, often unexplored option of making something that can be enjoyed by the people you like. If you can widen that to a specific audience, so much the better.
@m00nrac00n Yeah, though only by accident. If he knew he was making the right calls he wouldn't have expected to sell only six copies. This is unfortunately a very, very prevalent issue in indie spaces.
The absolute best part of Balatro is that it is not self aware. The joker is not some kind of fiendish villain. There's not some weird "lol it's all a game" twist. It's just fun.
@@exotic1405 I mean, meta-narratives in gaming started getting popular somewhere around the 2010s and have remained absurdly popular to this very day. Inscryption was one of the greatest games to come out in 2021, and it had no fourth wall to speak of lol. I understand why people would get desensitized to ''the game isn't actually JUST a game'' after all the stuff we've had, to the point that the opposite being true is a surprise.
I really liked the tarot's mechanic. I was never even slightly interested in tarots before playing Balatro, but after doing research on the major arcana, i was surprised to find out that the usage of tarots can be useful for a project i'm working on. Balatro was the game that made me basically unproductive for a while, but in the end it inspired me deeply.
I never have been and never will be all too interested in tarots, but I still adore whenever media make use of them to great effect, especially for example expanding upon characters by making them specific arcana. You can greatly elaborate on already established people without writing a single bit of storytelling, like characters in Persona being archetypes, or just release something like official character tarot card merch, kinda like Re:Zero did. (Although that's a bit unfair since R:Z is already a masterclass in symbolism and character writing)
@anusaukko6792hard agree. They are great story and character devices, regardless of their origins and actual value irl. Lots of fun to be had with them in plot
@d00ro779oi I think what they mean "The composer getting paid for sales of the soundtrack is while" Usually for commission/contract work like this, you get paid for the job and then the relationship ends. Localthunk basically paying royalties through sales of the soundtrack is going above and beyond.
@d00ro779oi probably what they meant is that its wild that the composer earns 100% of the sold ost, instead of being ripped off completely like triple a companies do
Yea balatro is one of my most played games of all time and this includes games like terraria minecraft fortnite pokemon series as a whole Yea balatro is great
This is EXACTLY the kind of pipeline I am following as an artist learning game dev in Godot. Pure passion, never pressure. I am so happy for Thunk to live my dreams and genuinely hope he gets the best game dev career outcome of freedom and creative liberty I aspire to! These are the kind of people who should NEVER be laid off!
I thought it'd be good to highlight the fact that this man made the whole game in LÖVE2D, a game framework that runs on Lua. This whole incredibly complex and engaging game is coded in Lua-a language that doesn't even have structs.
@@machine.angel.777 yeah, however the nice thing about untyped languages is I can do some "truly wild shit" that would make the typed-half of my brain scream
Indie games have so much potential. Balatro is a perfect example of an indie game being a hit despite having absolutely no quote-unquote end goal. It’s such a fucking good game I can’t even begin to describe it.
The game awards was such a breathe of fresh air this year... Between a passionate family game winning game of the year, and a one man made indie game riding to be a nominee, I think games are finally realizing being fun is the #1 priority
You have no idea how excited I am for this video. I think its safe to say you are my favorite video essay youtuber. I love the way you base your themes around the game itself and the fact that you made one about one of my favorite games this year is just so awesome. I have actually rewatched some of your videos before which is something I very rarely do
Thank you very much for the kind words! It’s still unbelievable to read comments like yours. For years I looked up to TH-camrs (and still do), but I never thought I could one day make videos that other people would enjoy just as much.
Of course you do these. You do these indie developers solid justice from going over the roots of their projects to thoroughly describing the development processes in a way that keeps it engaging. I cannot fathom just how much time you put into researching and making these videos, but I can assure you that your hard work more than paid off. :)
+ for the algorithm. This story must be told, as it feels really inspiring since Lethal Company. The story of how one guy made a game that he made just for fun and to only play with friends and family, suddenly becoming this year's greatest deck-building indie phenomenon.
@Tackster Have you seen the feedback the newest rebuild of the game has been getting? Issac fans are not all the happy rn, hell a few of them are still pissed about repentance.
I never comment on videos but this deserves it! As a game student triple majoring in art, design, and programming, Balatro is one of my favorite games of all time for several reasons. -The art is simple yet unique and charming, making this game easy to wind down to at the end of the day. -The program doesn't seem like anything terribly complex (and I could only imagine how easily recyclable it would be throughout game modes). -And lastly THE DESIGN! The traditional card deck is easily the most iconic medium with which to design games. Balatro really stood out to me because it's easy to understand for non-gamers, but has a difficulty scale based on how the player learns and plays. I will vouch for this game for the rest of my life, not only because it was nominated for Game of the Year as an indie title, but also because it's a gateway for those completely new to gaming.
One of my friends in my friend group (that consists of some of the gacha addicts) was also malding when I tried playing Balatro and said "no wonder this game won against ZZZ and Wuthering Waves". He's coping to the point that he said "bUt ZZZ hAs wAYYY mORe qUaliTY!!!!".
@@Bluejake3 honestly ZZZ doesn’t even have better graphics than balatro. more detailed and complex, sure, but it’s not like balatro was aiming for photorealistic and failed to meet the goal. I think balatro has essentially perfect graphics, because they fit the game and convey the artistic vision. balatro’s visuals would not be improved with ray tracing and fluid simulations is what i’m trying to say
12:51 not finding seeded runs appealing (and I get that, I feel the same) but seeing that there is an interest and talking to people to understand it AND then making sure the game properly reflects that wish is something a lot of developers should look at. I've played a ton of games and it's honestly a bit sad to see when a game either goes away from the "broken" stuff just to streamline it. Yea, now all is completely normal, but that's also it. Beyond your normal run you have no reason to continue. And then there are also many promising games that do changes purely based on their hardcore audience. This one I'd say is more difficult, but my advice is always to create an alternative mode for it. The hardcore audience will play the game the most, but makes up a minor percent of the entire audience - and what promotes your game to new people is not what the hardcore audience likes. This may really not sound like a big deal, but it has killed quite a lot of promising games I had seen and it's sad to see that happening, especially when they already have the feedback how interested people are in using those features by seeing plenty of videos about it, meaning they should be aware that it's so much fun.
Amen, especially to the issue of attracting new players vs keeping the hardcore players. For reasons like that is why planetside 2 is dying... well their dev team lead also just sucks in general but alas.
The best stuff always comes from people who are originally from a different field. Shakespeare was a botanist first before he became a playwright later.
@@SobmicSSBB Yup, am a huge fan of the greatness of generalist people-the ones who often indirectly just cross-apply the stuff they learn and then result in new or exciting concepts that just blow people away and simultaneously push the standards for things as a result.
I really like that this game has been made by just 1 person, following his heart, trying to make something fun for him. Not trying to suit what he felt someone else would like, trying to monetize X Y or Z, trying to appeal to players that love this or that game. A real piece of art, done to just be good to the one creating it, and then if someone else likes it, even better. Also as a person that has been in the industry for 12 years in QA I'm pleasantly surprised that it's as clean as it is given it's been done by just the author. Props to you LocalThunk. Keep doing what you love and enjoying the process!
I love this story, and it makes me really sad that so many people have been complaining about the praise this game gets because “its just a card game” Playing it, you can feel how much Localthunk loves this medium, and that’s how good games are truly made
Honestly I never kinda looked into it. But I bought the game a week ago and play it pretty often. Sometimes I catch myself on a thought "Oh I would like to play Dark souls 2 now" and five minutes later I am sitting thinking what cards to discard, because I am playing Balatro instead. I think for me it's just the simplicity of it with it's unique visuals and music
I’m a triple A gamer primarily, upset at innovation dying in the triple a space. but seeing stuff like this shows me that creativity is alive and well in the indie space. Love to see gamers rewarding a dev who made a fantastic game
As a dude who is already planning on making his hopefully-GOTY-worthy dream game completely solo, the dude who made Balatro showed me that it is not impossible to do (as well as the dude who made Chained Echoes, even though he didn't make it to the nominees, which doesn't matter) 💪 Also props to u for making this amazing video - so soon after the GOTY2024 show hahahah
This dude made this game simply out of passion and love for making games without any plans on trying to make it sell well. That passion and listening to player feedback without compromising the original idea or trying to sell out is exactly what we need more of. He deserves all the success he's earned
Incredibly insightful documentary. I learned quite a lot about the developer that I've only heard pieces about. I adore their viewpoint on video game creating. Just a guy who loves games and the process, not someone who is after the limelight. Your visuals, script writing, and information gathering is fantastic. Keep up the great work and thank you for making this. ❤
@@ThatGuyGlen Personally i find dev streams and random interviews the biggest source of Hakita's insights and story bits from his life and general info about the game's development. I think it'd be a good idea to look at them once you start working on the video. Have a good day
I only got to know this game 2 weeks ago because of the GOTY nomination. I tried the free version via Apple Arcade. After 1 hour of playing I immediately decide to purchase the full version. This game hot me hooked, more than any AAA titles in the past year.
I know absolutely nothing about LocalThunk but he still feels super relatable, especially with the “go all in on an idea with minimal iterations and not share it with anyone for years” mentality.
Seeing another Mechanical Engineering student go to Indie Game Dev is inspiring. I'm an ME student that wants to become an indie dev myself. Hopefully I can make something even a tenth as fun as Balatro
Hi there! It was interesting making a video that’s more topical than usual, I usually don’t get that chance since it takes me so long to make a video. The Game Awards were just right around the corner when I started making it so I took the opportunity. And thanks! Hope your week is going well too.
Thing is, this is exactly what made warframe the success it is today. Listened to the community and developers putting all this effort in to make something genuinely fun. Even 13 years later they're still doing it as a passion project driven by the fans. That's the real reason that Balatro and Warframe have become so successful.
What indie game would you like to see me cover next? Leave a suggestion in the comments below! Also, if you enjoyed the video, please consider subscribing to stay up to date on future “Game Dev Docs” episodes. Leaving a like and sharing the video also helps out! Support me on Patreon and get exclusive content like ad-free content, access to my Discord server and more: www.patreon.com/ThatGuyGlen
never knew anything about the developer so it was interesting to hear about his history and his thoughts about this game’s unexpected success . definitely deserving of it, the game is so perfectly made imo
I started playing this game in December 2024. Before Christmas, I bought it on my android, ios and steam. This game is highly addictive. I hear the soundtrack in my dreams. While brushing my teeth, I look at the mirror and wonder if the hangman was in that pack I skipped.
Stories like this inspire the next generation of indie devs and, as someone who works in the industry, I love to see that. Not everyone will succeed, but so is the case with any endeavour. Just keep making games, keep learning, do not quit your day job just yet, and one day you might make it. The only way to fail is to quit trying.
This is such a great game. I'd love my children to be able to play it. Hopefully when he adds loot boxes and microtransactions, they can finally try it out for themselves. Really interesting video. The way the developer treated the music guy is amazing. I'm definitely interested in whatever he makes next.
Got balatro this june and had so much fun playing it. The sound and aesthetic is such a nice experience. I really hope the developer keeps having fun with the process
Amazing video, as always. And good timing! I was wondering about the game, though I had no time to check what the fuzz was all about. Here I got the explanation way better than what I would have got from reviews, as history of development sheds so much light on the mentality, ideas and main core of the game.
Thank you, glad you liked it! I never thought about my videos as reviews, but I guess I do go into all the core mechanics, ideas and how it all they came together.
Ma boy wanted to do a fun game to play for friends and family, and ended up doing the best rogue like-poker play game ever. Just like the Stardew Valley coder. One of a kind.
This screamed like an IRL Game Dev Tycoon run to me, the most down-to-earth guy just making games wherever and slowly building fame, maybe to one day make bigger games. Amazing tbh.
"I wanna go back to the best prt of game development: the joy of creating" This man is such an inspiration, just making something cool is one of the most fulfilling experiences you can ever partake in. God I love this guy.
I don't understand. He made no efforts in marketing, and some streamers at some point played it live... But how did he make 1 million dollars in sales in the first 3 days then???
@@Jalopezlagit’s sad to see demos fall out of fashion. I remember when so many anticipated releases would come with a demo so that the player could feel the game out. Unfortunate circumstances have now made them barely a thing. The only notable big publisher that puts out demos for their AAA games anymore is probably Nintendo.
Man I love balatro it's super addicting. Localthunk seems like a nice and humble man. when I first saw it never thought Id enjoy it. Boy was I absolutely wrong. who thought poker rougelike would be so good.
I found out about Balatro because of the age rating controversy and articles surrounding it. As silly as I think the controversy is, I'm almost glad that there was this controversy, otherwise I think I never would've found out about the game.
I just discovered this game 2 days ago, bought it today for myself for Christmas and I'm hooked. It's such a fun game, and I love single-person development games--shoutout Roller Coaster Tycoon!
The greatest artists make up their own ideas. Successful artists steal. Every now and then one of those great artists still becomes successful despite the odds.
I love when developers do research to make an iconic game title. He could've just slapped some Poker-like title onto it, but he discovered an old term for a jester through research and it fit so well and makes the game more recognizable.
I love the part about seeds. That was probably the part where he discovered how much the rogue-like community loves them when it comes to a sort of competitive run. People try to see how well they do compared to others with the same conditions. Binding of Isaac was a popular Rogue-lite utilizing it. This was also popular with seeded level games like Worms, and was used with that license since the earliest games in the series.
Thanks to Factor75 for sponsoring today's video. Use my link to get 50% off and free shipping on your first Factor box! strms.net/factor75_thatguyglen
Scam
Great document! What a HIDDEN GEM dev, really thanks to him created this game, never know my life needed such game to spark up my gaming addiction again 🥰
stop this bull shit lies... that game has more quality and balanced art and music, then most tripple A games. no way its done by any individual.
@@Jan12700 Kinda, I have used it for a while, and skip and stopped it.
In terms of what you can meal prep yourself: YES its a scam, in the sense that its like 10x the price on small orders for one meal.
The only way factor makes sense, is if you order 2weeks of meals or more (more, and have a deep freeze because you will be freezing their "fresh never frozen" offerings to make it worth it) and rotate the meals out 3-4 meals at a time per person buying for. You gotta pause since they wanna get you on the weekly delivery, and make you spend absurd prices. If you get it once a month, with all the meals you need, no discount, and you freeze and thaw, it turns out pretty damn good, and just a bit more than frozen dinner prices.
All that said, I'm still gonna just go the meal prep route, since it means I dont get surprised when I forgot to skip a week. So yeah. I don't recommend it weekly. Optimally monthly big delivery so you pick all you want for the month, and freeze/thaw/reheat. It is good though, better than frozen dinners by a large margin.
No, I don't think I will support this crappy brand
Imagine being hired by a random guy on fiverr to make a soundtrack for his game, making a couple of songs for it and a year later it’s played by an orchestra at The Game Awards medley alongside music of Black Myth Wukong, Metaphor ReFantazio and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. This is indeed a surreal timeline.
I want to know what the music composer on fiverr is thinking when they saw their music playing at the game award along side with the big names.
We need a whole new video just for the musician.
@@no-bodymr6419 That's exactly what @luigiboyinblu said... actual NPC
Flute guy went crazy
@@pikabuzz1 I don’t think so. I just being curious if that fiverr music composer ever come out and say something about their products being part of something big.
No expectations, no adapting to the market, just a guy making something that seemed cool. This is why we love indie titles, the passion behind just making something has resulted in some of the greatest games of all time
its the greatest thing a indie developer is able to do, just make something they like, and released it into the wild.
This is how you make a fun game.
Indie devs aren't afraid to just do what they want, innovate where needed, and take risks. I'm a firm believer that's a bit reason why so many are pure gas. Sure, loads don't go anywhere, but the environment allowing and even encouraging such risk or wanton choices has great benefit too.
Not all indie titles are created equally, but the indie gaming scene will always be the heart and soul of the industry. Not all of the big "AAA" games are slop, but they're typically working from preexisting formulas to maximize profits instead of innovating and exploring fresh new ideas.
@@enutrofdude generally all indie games have interesting premises but the quality of the execution varies wildly.
Localthunk being only dimly aware of deck building games, yet releasing a deck builder thats going to cast a shadow over the genre for years to come is incredibly funny
This is a surprisingly common pattern across creative endeavours, being an outsider means you're not clouded by tropes and preconceptions, and can make something truly fresh.
Balatro isn't really a deck building game though. Nearly all of the strategy/gameplay comes from the Joker and Shop mechanics. The actual deck building mechanics range from never-mattering to slightly shifting the odds of what you roll.
@@La0bouchere You could argue that your Jokers are part of your deck, and the synergies with the card enhances and hands are deck building.
@@La0bouchereBruh you probably never broke One Million.
@@La0bouchere kid named Idol:
kid named Baron:
kid named Steel Joker:
kid named Glass Joker:
kid named any non-common Joker in the entire fucking game:
Important thing I think is worth mentioning here. The dev recently posted on Twitter that when he had his will made he had a thing in it that specifically stated in legalese that Balatro would never ever ever be used for gambling related stuff no matter what happens. Like nothing being associated with casinos or slot machines etc.
Guess I'll just add him to my wall of non-gambling GOATs, along with cookie clicker dev and vampire survivors dev.
It's even written in his will, isn't it?
yeah good luck with that
@@crab_with_no_legs ...you want to reread the comment you are responding to?
wanna bet
Balatro has an 18+ rating, then EA FC, Madden, NBA 2K should all have a 21+ rating. Its essentially hardcore gambling.
But... but it that would hurt the excutives money so... so they don't do that
Na, they have the money to pay off rating boards.
Especially upsetting since LocalThunk has gone as far as putting in his will that he doesn’t ever want the game/IP to be linked with actual gambling
REAL
insane that they care more about the aesthetic of gambling than actual real gambling
Funny story the dev posted recently on twitter. At first he had not so many jokers. But the publisher in a called said the wrong number of jokers.. and instead of correcting them, he started drawing and working to reach the number the publisher said in that call.
It was 120 before the call and the publisher said 150 jokers
That's why i love local thunk. We complained about tge sell button on mobile and literally on like 2 day he had a patch ready for us.
That's freaking hilarious. Not wanting to admit that there's less than expected so just- making up the difference.
The mobile version is a fucking amazing port too, the controls just make sense and using the touchscreen feels intuitive since the game is mouse controlled anyways. Only thing I wish was for there to be a way to deselect all cards (right click on pc)
I cannot parse this comment
balatro is like a little pocket dimension for me to chill in. i have it on my phone so if i'm dealing with a flare of awful medical issues i can just curl up in bed and play a few runs while i wait for meds to work or things to calm down enough for me to get back to life. its not infuriating for me when i lose a run. i just go 'oh okay i should do this or that' and move on. the music is right up my alley too for when i need to rest. its just so good.
Yeah localthunk really nailed the chill factor. I don’t get upset when I lose and I think that’s one of the factors in why it’s so addictive. Restarting the game feels like I never stopped.
Good thinking. Hope you feel better
I love that there are no time limits or anything of the sort, it makes such a huge difference because you can always play at your own speed
@no.no.4680 The game is highly enticing to even watch other people play because it doesn't feel like the game is high tension in any sense, there's a goal, there's even an endless mode, but there's no big rushes or anything that feels unfair. It's the epitome of healthy game design, no gambling, and that's why it's highly addictive, it's fun and challenging and my god the ui and accessibility to new players is so heavily appreciated.
AAA Devs: work cwunch and put in woot boxes and microwtwansactions
Indie Devs: Damn, I didn’t pay the soundtrack guy enough. Let’s make him a contract
Tbf that guy made the most fire soundtrack Iv heard to a game since Epic Battle Fastasy 5 (just check it out, its flash gaming at its best). And personally, I do not put game music on that level easy. If you are curious, sample some of the composer's work. Her alias is Phyrnna professionally. Love finding great little known artists like that.
@@thomasallen9974 ebf mention!1!11!
Should have hired Mick Gordon :D
The fact that Glen seamelessy integrated footage from The Game Awards that happened LAST NIGHT shows you how serious he takes his craft. I'm hitting the like button on this video SO HARD....
Played this one pretty close to the chest! I was lucky in predicting it would win every award it was nominated for except GOTY (although I think it deserves it) so I didn’t have to edit the script at least :P
i was thinking the same thing!
Facts
@@ThatGuyGlen you could say you GAMBLED with that edit? 🤡
I thought I was losing it when he said “at the 2024 Game Awards”; thought I had slipped into 2025 somehow
It's Insane how self-aware LocalThunk is, Props to him, he has made a masterpiece.
During the demo stages he would always address feedback from people whether it was small or complicated, tell why he did that way or how he should do it better. The guy took feedback like a sponge and completely nailed everything.
@@tburka91 Even during the demo stage the game was great though
Hey, thanks for the video. I've been gaming for about 45 years. Balatro is an absolute gem on par with the classics such as Pac-Man, Tetris, and Minecraft. It's great to know that the money I've spent (purchased the game on 3 different platforms) is going to a fellow who seems very level-headed, creative, humble, and dedicated to his craft. I wish Mr. LocalThunk all the best in dealing with the unexpected avalanche of attention his game has been getting. As a quiet person who loves to be self-absorbed in my own hobbies, I offer a rare combination of congratulations and sympathy.
Nicely put. Agree it is classic on par with the best of the best.
My pleasure! LocalThunk deserves all the success. He was never after fame or money, but his sheer passion for the craft of developing games got him to where he is now.
what kind of gaming consoles and developers existed in 1989?
@@thomasnguyen4427 1989 was a good year for console wars! Sega released the Genesis to compete against the aging NES, which was already 6 years old. Nintendo released the Game Boy in 1989, but didn't make a real response to Sega until the SNES came out in 1990-1991. There was also the TurboGrafx-16, which was a powerful console ( by 1989 standards) but it wasn't as popular as Nintendo or Sega's consoles.
As for developers... Konami released Castlevania III in 1989, and Capcom had a big hit with Ghosts 'n' Ghouls. (Capcom's game "Street Fighter" had already been in the arcades for a couple of years by this point.) Nintendo's big 1989 games were Super Mario 3 and Zelda II. SquareSoft had already released two Final Fantasy games, and Enix had released three Dragon Quest games. Activision and Electronic Arts (EA) were also around and making games back then.
Many of those older development studios aren't around anymore, or merged with other studios (like Bandai merging with Pac-Man's developer Namco to become Bandai-Namco, or SquareSoft merging with Enix to become SquareEnix.)
...You can look this stuff up online, of course. 🙂 I don't mind yapping about it, though. Those were good and memorable gaming years.
@@thomasnguyen4427Tetris was released in 1989. So was the original Sim City, DuckTales , Super Mario Land, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... Man, 1989 was a big year. Consoles back then were the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Game Boy, Sega Master System, Sega Genesis (Released in '88) and a bunch of PC-like platforms, like Amiga, MS-DOS and Commodore 64 (this was my first one, it used tape cassettes to store data. It took forever to load a program).
Balatro winning best mobile game over ZZZ, wuthering waves, and afk journey was a crazy achievement.
Gacha garbage doesn't belong in the runnings.
absolutely, now WW/ZZZ fanbase would be completely disappointed
And i expected ZZZ to not be the game of the year so more rewards obviously
AFK Journey aka another microtransaction laden mobile game
Balatro vs 4 microtransaction games
David and 4 Goliath. David won.
LocalThunk even made a claim in his will, that even after his death, Balatro IP will NEVER be used in a gambling/casino.
He's just all around good dude. So nice to see Balatro and him succeed in this day and age.
Balatro instantly became one of my favorite games. The CRT filter is a genius move, it gives old poker machine vibes. Being able to make a crazy synergy with foil/polychrome jokers is extremely satisfying. One time I had a joker that retriggers all face cards with another joker that would turn each played face card into a gold card and finally a joker that made all cards count as face cards ... by the end of the run I had a full gold deck 😂
That's why I love the "all cards count as face cards" joker
Pair the midas with vampire joker, it’s a very good synergy
That's all fun and games until you run into the "Disable all Face Cards" Blind and can't reroll it because that voucher didn't spawn this run
Once I had the all cards are face cards joker and the retrigger all played face cards joker, then I ran into the all face cards are drawn face down boss blind
@@SupremeZenithin one of my runs i had that and i got the boss blind that made all face cards upside down and it ruined one of my best runs
LocalThunk seems like a super nice guy. Balatro is so much fun, go play it! It may look like its boring but its super addictive
Ok, LocalThunk, sure. ;)
Don't put that evil on others! WARNING if you start playing Balatro say goodbye to your family.
I found balatro through dave the diver, and i got hooked basically immediately. Best $10 i’ve spent
Addictive ≠ Good
I showed my dad the game as he was going to bed. He immediately loved it and just started saying “one more” every time we won a round for around 20 min lmao
The fact that it still receives criticism for being a "gambling game" and even had rating boards trying to restrict it goes to show the stupidity of people. People often justify gacha games as "not being real gambling" and allow children to play them despite having actual real money MTX gambling in them. Yet a game which has no gambling in it at all with either real or fake money but simply has the aesthetic of card games and the same hands as poker gets considered a "gambling game".
What's next, is peggle also a gambling game because it copies japanese pachinko gambling machines?
People also say "well it has RNG mechanics so that's gambling!" when the entire genre of roguelikes is RNG. Is D&D gambling? is MtG gambling?
It's so stupid. People literally just see playing cards and think "that must be gambling!" and refuse all evidence to the contrary.
Peakggle mentioned🎉🎉🎉
iirc localthunk wrote INTO HIS WILL that he won't ever allow for any irl balatro slot machines or similar
I found a comment that mocking this game for being gambling game and you have to pay to play a gambling game while he only play gacha games.
My wife has watched me play and always asks me if I’m gambling when she has seen gameplay. I legit think using the American dollar symbol just makes normal people think you are playing with real money. But I like the choice of using a real world currency for the game.
I developed a gambling habit over the last few months and fell behind in my budget by 1000$ plus. I’ve been trying to stop for weeks and downloaded this game just because I have wanted to play it. I found that it scratches that gambling itch without me losing real green dollars. It’s been a couple weeks since I’ve lost money and now I’m addicted to this game. It may not be a GAMBLING GAME but it’s definitely a game that helps a gambler.
it's funny to see this game was removed from stores for "gambling", but here in brazil, sporting bet basically took the entire country, once prohibited, it's basically legal, with ads on the internet and on open TV, anyway amazing video as always! keep it up.
It reached 3.5 mil copies sold like 3 days ago, imagine if this weren't banned in counties like South Korea and more.
It’s a strange situation and the ratings board seems to almost make arbitrary decisions as they initially agreed to give it a 3+ rating, only to change it a few months later. And thank you, glad you enjoyed the video!
A lot of people were assumed it's just a gambling card game even though the core of gambling is to bet something at first which Balatro has none, the chips are just score basically
Definitely just like here on PH
Saying "Balatro is gambling" is like saying "every game with money to manage is gambling". 🤷♂️
Balatro is basically The Binding of Isaac with blinds instead of rooms and antes instead of levels.
LUCK is such a huge factor in game development.
Steam is full of gems that don't sell.
You need talent, work ethic and luck.
That's the somewhat sad part to think about. For every one success story we all see, there must be dozens of passion projects, brilliant ideas, and masterful works out there that never reach the public eye.
Releasing a demo version also helps a lot. Steam Next Fest has been God’s gift to indie developers.
Fellow gamedevs take note, the reason he found success can be found two minutes into the video. People seem to think there's two camps of making a soulless consumer product, or making a game for yourself - but there's a third, often unexplored option of making something that can be enjoyed by the people you like.
If you can widen that to a specific audience, so much the better.
That part. He made all the right calls...
@m00nrac00n Yeah, though only by accident. If he knew he was making the right calls he wouldn't have expected to sell only six copies.
This is unfortunately a very, very prevalent issue in indie spaces.
The absolute best part of Balatro is that it is not self aware. The joker is not some kind of fiendish villain. There's not some weird "lol it's all a game" twist. It's just fun.
Gamers when they play a regular game
@@exotic1405 I mean, meta-narratives in gaming started getting popular somewhere around the 2010s and have remained absurdly popular to this very day. Inscryption was one of the greatest games to come out in 2021, and it had no fourth wall to speak of lol. I understand why people would get desensitized to ''the game isn't actually JUST a game'' after all the stuff we've had, to the point that the opposite being true is a surprise.
@anusaukko6792 I'm just jestin I get it
My villains in balatro are either the Plant or the Wheel of Fortune
@@SpiderrtankEverytime I see “Nope” 🤬
Interviewer: I see you created a multi-award winning and critically acclaimed game.
Localthunk: yeah, I just did that to pad my resume
Same interviewer: need 5+ year of experience for entry position
This is extremely well made! The game awards were yesterday and you still managers to feature footage and edit it in time! This video is awesome!
Thank you very much! I’m glad I was able to post it today, took a lot of work!
@@ThatGuyGlen your welcome :)
LocalThunk found he could pay the composer more when he earned more, while another game dev mentioned in the video did the opposite
Which dev?
@@maym8849 I think they are referring to the Doom Eternal composer drama
I really liked the tarot's mechanic. I was never even slightly interested in tarots before playing Balatro, but after doing research on the major arcana, i was surprised to find out that the usage of tarots can be useful for a project i'm working on. Balatro was the game that made me basically unproductive for a while, but in the end it inspired me deeply.
I never have been and never will be all too interested in tarots, but I still adore whenever media make use of them to great effect, especially for example expanding upon characters by making them specific arcana. You can greatly elaborate on already established people without writing a single bit of storytelling, like characters in Persona being archetypes, or just release something like official character tarot card merch, kinda like Re:Zero did. (Although that's a bit unfair since R:Z is already a masterclass in symbolism and character writing)
@anusaukko6792 based rezero reader
@anusaukko6792 My favorite use of tarots as such, or at least adjacent, was the trumps in Zelazny's Amber.
@anusaukko6792hard agree. They are great story and character devices, regardless of their origins and actual value irl. Lots of fun to be had with them in plot
Well that’s a better way to get into tarot (screams in I got cursed with The Arcana is the means by which all is revealed)
Man, I always look forward to your videos. They're so well put together and a wealth of knowledge. Hope you're doing well, my friend!
Thank you so much for your donation, you have no idea how much I appreciate that my friend! You made my week!
This game is incredible and the composer of the music getting paid for it is wild.
Getting paid for something you were commissioned to make is wild???
@d00ro779oi I think what they mean "The composer getting paid for sales of the soundtrack is while"
Usually for commission/contract work like this, you get paid for the job and then the relationship ends.
Localthunk basically paying royalties through sales of the soundtrack is going above and beyond.
@d00ro779oi probably what they meant is that its wild that the composer earns 100% of the sold ost, instead of being ripped off completely like triple a companies do
he means the ost you can buy on steam, usually they are made for people to support the dev but in this case 100% goes to the artist
@@zukukato5100OST?!?
Just bought last night after seeing a friend play it. Ohhh noo what have I gotten myself into for the next few obsessive weeks or months
I’m in the same boat!
Yea balatro is one of my most played games of all time and this includes games like terraria minecraft fortnite pokemon series as a whole
Yea balatro is great
Oh dude if your comparing playtime to terraria I already know this game will be great. Definitely getting it winter sale
This is EXACTLY the kind of pipeline I am following as an artist learning game dev in Godot.
Pure passion, never pressure.
I am so happy for Thunk to live my dreams and genuinely hope he gets the best game dev career outcome of freedom and creative liberty I aspire to! These are the kind of people who should NEVER be laid off!
14:00 The console ports were released the same day as the PC release. The mobile version was the only port to release months later
Yeah
It literally says it on the screen as he speaks lol
I thought it'd be good to highlight the fact that this man made the whole game in LÖVE2D, a game framework that runs on Lua. This whole incredibly complex and engaging game is coded in Lua-a language that doesn't even have structs.
Lua is the best, but don't ask me to code nothing in it
Same goes for Hades 2. I appreciate the psychosis.
It has tables, which can be anything you like: structs, classes, arrays, dictionaries, and sausages
@@paulsgcross well, they're not typed, i personally appreciate type safety
@@machine.angel.777 yeah, however the nice thing about untyped languages is I can do some "truly wild shit" that would make the typed-half of my brain scream
Localthunk is so chill its inspiring
Indie games have so much potential. Balatro is a perfect example of an indie game being a hit despite having absolutely no quote-unquote end goal. It’s such a fucking good game I can’t even begin to describe it.
Thank you for your awesome hard work on these as always. It's always nice to see an indie game get this much celebration.
My pleasure, I have a ton of fun making them!
The game awards was such a breathe of fresh air this year...
Between a passionate family game winning game of the year, and a one man made indie game riding to be a nominee, I think games are finally realizing being fun is the #1 priority
You have no idea how excited I am for this video. I think its safe to say you are my favorite video essay youtuber. I love the way you base your themes around the game itself and the fact that you made one about one of my favorite games this year is just so awesome. I have actually rewatched some of your videos before which is something I very rarely do
Thank you very much for the kind words! It’s still unbelievable to read comments like yours. For years I looked up to TH-camrs (and still do), but I never thought I could one day make videos that other people would enjoy just as much.
Of course you do these. You do these indie developers solid justice from going over the roots of their projects to thoroughly describing the development processes in a way that keeps it engaging. I cannot fathom just how much time you put into researching and making these videos, but I can assure you that your hard work more than paid off. :)
+ for the algorithm. This story must be told, as it feels really inspiring since Lethal Company. The story of how one guy made a game that he made just for fun and to only play with friends and family, suddenly becoming this year's greatest deck-building indie phenomenon.
very similar to how Isaac was designed to fail; and is now a universally treasured game
Thanks to mostly vtubers and the downfall of AAA studios.
and it was also a personal project 😁
@@darklighter131what do vtubers have to do with Isaac’s popularity
@Tackster Have you seen the feedback the newest rebuild of the game has been getting? Issac fans are not all the happy rn, hell a few of them are still pissed about repentance.
I never comment on videos but this deserves it! As a game student triple majoring in art, design, and programming, Balatro is one of my favorite games of all time for several reasons.
-The art is simple yet unique and charming, making this game easy to wind down to at the end of the day.
-The program doesn't seem like anything terribly complex (and I could only imagine how easily recyclable it would be throughout game modes).
-And lastly THE DESIGN! The traditional card deck is easily the most iconic medium with which to design games. Balatro really stood out to me because it's easy to understand for non-gamers, but has a difficulty scale based on how the player learns and plays.
I will vouch for this game for the rest of my life, not only because it was nominated for Game of the Year as an indie title, but also because it's a gateway for those completely new to gaming.
Amazing game. It's also crazy how gambling addicts are mad that their gambling waifu simulator lost to Balatro.
One of my friends in my friend group (that consists of some of the gacha addicts) was also malding when I tried playing Balatro and said "no wonder this game won against ZZZ and Wuthering Waves". He's coping to the point that he said "bUt ZZZ hAs wAYYY mORe qUaliTY!!!!".
@@divinelycursed768 just say better graphic doesnt always mean better quality
@@Bluejake3 honestly ZZZ doesn’t even have better graphics than balatro. more detailed and complex, sure, but it’s not like balatro was aiming for photorealistic and failed to meet the goal. I think balatro has essentially perfect graphics, because they fit the game and convey the artistic vision. balatro’s visuals would not be improved with ray tracing and fluid simulations is what i’m trying to say
12:51 not finding seeded runs appealing (and I get that, I feel the same) but seeing that there is an interest and talking to people to understand it AND then making sure the game properly reflects that wish is something a lot of developers should look at. I've played a ton of games and it's honestly a bit sad to see when a game either goes away from the "broken" stuff just to streamline it. Yea, now all is completely normal, but that's also it. Beyond your normal run you have no reason to continue. And then there are also many promising games that do changes purely based on their hardcore audience. This one I'd say is more difficult, but my advice is always to create an alternative mode for it. The hardcore audience will play the game the most, but makes up a minor percent of the entire audience - and what promotes your game to new people is not what the hardcore audience likes. This may really not sound like a big deal, but it has killed quite a lot of promising games I had seen and it's sad to see that happening, especially when they already have the feedback how interested people are in using those features by seeing plenty of videos about it, meaning they should be aware that it's so much fun.
Amen, especially to the issue of attracting new players vs keeping the hardcore players. For reasons like that is why planetside 2 is dying... well their dev team lead also just sucks in general but alas.
This is what I love: he didn't have any active references from the deck builder genre. Awesome!
The best stuff always comes from people who are originally from a different field.
Shakespeare was a botanist first before he became a playwright later.
@@SobmicSSBB Yup, am a huge fan of the greatness of generalist people-the ones who often indirectly just cross-apply the stuff they learn and then result in new or exciting concepts that just blow people away and simultaneously push the standards for things as a result.
I really like that this game has been made by just 1 person, following his heart, trying to make something fun for him. Not trying to suit what he felt someone else would like, trying to monetize X Y or Z, trying to appeal to players that love this or that game. A real piece of art, done to just be good to the one creating it, and then if someone else likes it, even better.
Also as a person that has been in the industry for 12 years in QA I'm pleasantly surprised that it's as clean as it is given it's been done by just the author. Props to you LocalThunk. Keep doing what you love and enjoying the process!
I love this story, and it makes me really sad that so many people have been complaining about the praise this game gets because “its just a card game”
Playing it, you can feel how much Localthunk loves this medium, and that’s how good games are truly made
Honestly I never kinda looked into it. But I bought the game a week ago and play it pretty often. Sometimes I catch myself on a thought "Oh I would like to play Dark souls 2 now" and five minutes later I am sitting thinking what cards to discard, because I am playing Balatro instead. I think for me it's just the simplicity of it with it's unique visuals and music
I’m a triple A gamer primarily, upset at innovation dying in the triple a space. but seeing stuff like this shows me that creativity is alive and well in the indie space. Love to see gamers rewarding a dev who made a fantastic game
As a dude who is already planning on making his hopefully-GOTY-worthy dream game completely solo, the dude who made Balatro showed me that it is not impossible to do (as well as the dude who made Chained Echoes, even though he didn't make it to the nominees, which doesn't matter) 💪 Also props to u for making this amazing video - so soon after the GOTY2024 show hahahah
Haha thanks, it was fun putting this one together! And good luck with your game project!
@ThatGuyGlen Thnx! 💪🤩
It IS impossible (statistically), but have fun.
@@Rai2M tbh it doesn't need to be GOTY-worthy ofc hahahah, but something to the success that Chained Echoes got for example would be a dream come true
This dude made this game simply out of passion and love for making games without any plans on trying to make it sell well. That passion and listening to player feedback without compromising the original idea or trying to sell out is exactly what we need more of. He deserves all the success he's earned
Incredibly insightful documentary. I learned quite a lot about the developer that I've only heard pieces about. I adore their viewpoint on video game creating. Just a guy who loves games and the process, not someone who is after the limelight. Your visuals, script writing, and information gathering is fantastic. Keep up the great work and thank you for making this. ❤
My pleasure, thank you so much for your kind words! More videos are coming!
Hey Glen? I really recommend making a video on ULTRAKILL once it fully releases. I’d like to know more on the history of it and how Hakita did stuff.
so real
I’m keeping my eye on it ;)
@@ThatGuyGlen Personally i find dev streams and random interviews the biggest source of Hakita's insights and story bits from his life and general info about the game's development. I think it'd be a good idea to look at them once you start working on the video. Have a good day
@@ThatGuyGlen Great!
@wons7416 Thanks for that suggestion, I'll definitely take a deep dive into those!
Awsome video, Balatro def deserves all the appreciation its getting
Thanks, glad to hear you liked it!
He even draw the Jokers himself and they look amazing! 😮
I only got to know this game 2 weeks ago because of the GOTY nomination. I tried the free version via Apple Arcade. After 1 hour of playing I immediately decide to purchase the full version. This game hot me hooked, more than any AAA titles in the past year.
I know absolutely nothing about LocalThunk but he still feels super relatable, especially with the “go all in on an idea with minimal iterations and not share it with anyone for years” mentality.
Seeing another Mechanical Engineering student go to Indie Game Dev is inspiring.
I'm an ME student that wants to become an indie dev myself. Hopefully I can make something even a tenth as fun as Balatro
I seriously can't wait to see how the speedrunning community evolves within this game. It's going to be AWESOME!!!
While all of your videos are the highest of quality, this is absolutely brilliant. You're a fine documentary make and I hope you never stop.
Thank you very much! I’m really happy how this one turned out. And I’m not stopping anytime soon, I’m having too much fun making these!
BABE WAKE UP THE KING JUST UPLOADED
Hello again
I am impressed that you were able to integrate the game awards results from yesterday into your video
Anyway hope your week is going well
Hi there! It was interesting making a video that’s more topical than usual, I usually don’t get that chance since it takes me so long to make a video. The Game Awards were just right around the corner when I started making it so I took the opportunity. And thanks! Hope your week is going well too.
Thing is, this is exactly what made warframe the success it is today. Listened to the community and developers putting all this effort in to make something genuinely fun. Even 13 years later they're still doing it as a passion project driven by the fans. That's the real reason that Balatro and Warframe have become so successful.
What indie game would you like to see me cover next? Leave a suggestion in the comments below! Also, if you enjoyed the video, please consider subscribing to stay up to date on future “Game Dev Docs” episodes. Leaving a like and sharing the video also helps out! Support me on Patreon and get exclusive content like ad-free content, access to my Discord server and more: www.patreon.com/ThatGuyGlen
Lethal Company?
Crypt of the Necrodancer could be a fun one...Not many indies collab with Nintendo
Path of achra.
Cruelty Squad could be an interesting game to cover.
Fear and Hunger!
never knew anything about the developer so it was interesting to hear about his history and his thoughts about this game’s unexpected success . definitely deserving of it, the game is so perfectly made imo
0:13 thats 20 million right there :D
I mean 20 mil is over 2 mil, so he is not wrong...
@@xqlenty and yet, the game sold "only" 3.5 mil :D
It’s a subtle easter egg for when the game eventually does sell 20 million copies.
@@ThatGuyGlengigabrain
I started playing this game in December 2024. Before Christmas, I bought it on my android, ios and steam.
This game is highly addictive. I hear the soundtrack in my dreams. While brushing my teeth, I look at the mirror and wonder if the hangman was in that pack I skipped.
Thanks to this my 2-hour transverse to/from work turned quality gaming time instead of swiping shorts❤
We need to keep guys like thunk safe, we need more people making games for fun rather than money
The best games always have the developer/s with the mindset "I'm making a game I want to play, a game that is fun."
Stories like this inspire the next generation of indie devs and, as someone who works in the industry, I love to see that. Not everyone will succeed, but so is the case with any endeavour. Just keep making games, keep learning, do not quit your day job just yet, and one day you might make it. The only way to fail is to quit trying.
1:52 literally the speech given by Swen Vincke
Swen love
Such a passionate yet humble guy. Local thunk, if u are reading this, thanks for a great game, and you are a inspiration to some of us!
Was waiting for this video! Perfect timing!
This is such a great game. I'd love my children to be able to play it. Hopefully when he adds loot boxes and microtransactions, they can finally try it out for themselves.
Really interesting video. The way the developer treated the music guy is amazing. I'm definitely interested in whatever he makes next.
Finally. The Balatro video, thank you Glen!
My pleasure!
Got balatro this june and had so much fun playing it. The sound and aesthetic is such a nice experience. I really hope the developer keeps having fun with the process
17:47 the pure WHAT?
Joy of creating
Fnaf reference?!
@@otakugamer4927 TJOC reference!!!
Amazing video, as always. And good timing! I was wondering about the game, though I had no time to check what the fuzz was all about. Here I got the explanation way better than what I would have got from reviews, as history of development sheds so much light on the mentality, ideas and main core of the game.
Thank you, glad you liked it! I never thought about my videos as reviews, but I guess I do go into all the core mechanics, ideas and how it all they came together.
Ma boy wanted to do a fun game to play for friends and family, and ended up doing the best rogue like-poker play game ever. Just like the Stardew Valley coder. One of a kind.
Love your videos man. Keep up the great work!
Comes out of nowhere
Releases a goty
Vanishes
Refuses to elaborate
Dude is a menace 😂
This screamed like an IRL Game Dev Tycoon run to me, the most down-to-earth guy just making games wherever and slowly building fame, maybe to one day make bigger games. Amazing tbh.
sponsor ends at 4:03
Doing the gods' work, thank you
Knowing that he was inspired by luck be a landlord makes so much sense. I always noticed the strong connection between the two
All business is luck. Sustainability is the skill of a business. Once
"I wanna go back to the best prt of game development: the joy of creating"
This man is such an inspiration, just making something cool is one of the most fulfilling experiences you can ever partake in. God I love this guy.
I don't understand. He made no efforts in marketing, and some streamers at some point played it live... But how did he make 1 million dollars in sales in the first 3 days then???
that was a demo, the official release made money
The game had a few demo that youtubes and streamers played. When the full game launched people were ready.
It's why demos and or betas are so important especially for new titles.
@@Jalopezlagit’s sad to see demos fall out of fashion. I remember when so many anticipated releases would come with a demo so that the player could feel the game out. Unfortunate circumstances have now made them barely a thing. The only notable big publisher that puts out demos for their AAA games anymore is probably Nintendo.
Game good
Man I love balatro it's super addicting. Localthunk seems like a nice and humble man. when I first saw it never thought Id enjoy it. Boy was I absolutely wrong. who thought poker rougelike would be so good.
Bro turned the steam deck into a card gaming device on a whim 😂
Legendary
I just play it on my IPad and IPhone
any device is the balatro gaming device now
This is such a cool story. Glad he got lucky and succeeded in a field he loves. The game is so fun.
0:13 two million ?
The least hinged way to attempt to write that number
I found out about Balatro because of the age rating controversy and articles surrounding it.
As silly as I think the controversy is, I'm almost glad that there was this controversy, otherwise I think I never would've found out about the game.
Focussing on a game you yourself would enjoy playing is a great policy.
I just discovered this game 2 days ago, bought it today for myself for Christmas and I'm hooked. It's such a fun game, and I love single-person development games--shoutout Roller Coaster Tycoon!
The greatest artists make up their own ideas.
Successful artists steal.
Every now and then one of those great artists still becomes successful despite the odds.
I love when developers do research to make an iconic game title. He could've just slapped some Poker-like title onto it, but he discovered an old term for a jester through research and it fit so well and makes the game more recognizable.
this should've won game of the year IN MY OPINION
I love the part about seeds. That was probably the part where he discovered how much the rogue-like community loves them when it comes to a sort of competitive run. People try to see how well they do compared to others with the same conditions. Binding of Isaac was a popular Rogue-lite utilizing it. This was also popular with seeded level games like Worms, and was used with that license since the earliest games in the series.
Releasing this game for mobile is the best decision
Its so comfortable and addictive
Oh my god its great on PC but it works so well on mobile. Best phone game ever. If I have empty time to fill when outside its like a time machine.
Making things that are purely fun and passion fueled are exactly why games like these deserve the awards they get and why Indy titles are so important
Game at 6:46 is across the obelisk. I cant find your comment sorry
Clutch. Was looking for his comment and found urs first 😂
This guy made an amazing game, no microtransactions, no real time online stuff, just a funny card game. Thats respectable
Game is very polished.