Balatro should be banned. This is how addictive the biggest surprise so far in 2024 is. But a trick works better than any gambling therapy.
London, United Kingdom – Luckily, Balatro doesn’t involve real money. In my opinion, the deck builder would have what it takes to destroy one existence after another in arcades. Instead, you can only win virtual dollars per turn and then spend them again on playing cards. But where you don’t lose any fortune, the addiction costs you hours of time in front of the screen – whether on the PC or the PS5. Actually a quality feature for a video game, but the desire for the next high score can – at least for me – take on unhealthy traits. However, one trick works like the best nicotine patch.
Balatro made easy – this is how you beat every ante without shop luck
The key is not in the cards: Balatro was recently released for the PS5. Anyone who, like me, has already sat down at the virtual poker table knows these thoughts: “Just one more round. Just another try. I just need a bit of luck in the shop.” And your evening will melt away faster than chocolate ice cream at 30 degrees in summer. It’s just too much fun to build an overpowering deck that will make your scores soar.
But you can put an end to the seemingly equally unbeatable addiction loop. Just one more round. Really just this one more run. Without having to rely on the favor of the shop fairy. But in Balatro there isn’t one joker or one special card that always lets you win. Without the right deck or the right combination, you won’t be successful, even with the highest multiplier. However, one thing should be your top priority, no matter how many chips you have or which hand you are focused on: simple math.
This important trick can be easily overlooked in Balatro – and costs a lot of points
Practical tips: That’s right, the big trick that I’ve been promising you throughout the text is mastering arithmetic at elementary school level. But don’t be angry with me, I seem to have not considered this in Balatro for far too long. And I’m sure I’m not alone in this. Your jokers must not only be carefully selected based on bonus effects, but also with regard to their order. If you play your multiplier jokers too early, it can cost you a lot of points. Here is a small calculation example with an unleveled pair of jacks:
- 30 chips x 2 multipliers (base value) + 10 multipliers (Joker 1) x 20 multipliers (Joker 2) = 30 chips x 240 multipliers
- 30 chips x 2 multipliers (base value) x 20 multipliers (Joker 2) + 10 multipliers (Joker 1) = 30 chips x 50 multipliers
This is because your jokers are activated from left to right. Point before the line! So if you have an effect that adds 10 multiplier points, it’s worth putting the x20 multiplier to the right of it. This way you will end up with a significantly higher result. If you pay attention to this consistently, you will take luck more into your own hands and can satisfy your card game addiction more quickly with a successful run. By the way, you can now also test Balatro with PS Plus for a short time.