Although it may seem hasty to sayBalatrois one of thebest indie games of all time, LocalThunk’s work is more than worthy of such recognition.
10 Best Games Like Balatro
A poker player in the gaming section? Have I got the selection for you.
Thanks to its numerous qualities, such as itsportabilityorfamiliarity for beginners, it’s a superb roguelike that has hooked me like very few games in the genre.
Its addictiveness is practically unmatched, with a perfect design and a fine-tuned difficulty that suits those who want to have a relaxed time and who crave a real challenge.
In both cases, the title offers a challenge with occasionally high peaks depending on the build you have, and according to my experience, after having completed it in its entirety,these are the ten hardest boss blinds inBalatro.
The Destroyer of Economies
Description
Playing your most played hand this run sets money to $0
Minimum Ante
Managing your financial resources inBalatrois essential for a good run. You can’t buy or roll shops without money, making it difficult to set up a good build.
Because of this,The Ox is a particularly annoying boss, as it takes your most played hand and conditions you not to play it so you can keep your dollars intact.
Depending on yourbuild and deck, it may be impossible for you to score enough points if you don’t go with your main hand. So you have to risk losing all your money to grasp victory while also considerably limiting your options for the future.
Gold and tarot cards help you overcome this inconvenience, but it’s undeniable thatThe Ox is one of the game’s most inopportune boss blinds.
The Most Infuriating Blind
Decrease level of played poker hand by 1 (hand levels can go as low as Level 1, and are reduced before scoring)
Among the things that can ruin your mood whileplaying Balatro, one of the most infuriating is running intoThe Arm.
It’s a devastating boss blind, especially if you encounter it in early Antes, where the level of your hands is often indispensable to reach the required scores to advance.
Facing it later when you can tolerate losing a level is no big deal, but if you are at the limit of points and have to spend more than one hand,you can give up your run.
Beating it on its own may not be much of a problem, but the way it limits your power going into the next Ante makes itextremely dangerous for any game.
8The Flint
Goodbye Score
Base Chips and Mult for played poker hands are halved for the entire round
Much like The Arm, if you rely on the intrinsic score of your poker hands rather than the Jokers,blinds like The Flint will be your downfall.
Balatro: 10 Best Tarot Cards, Ranked
Choose your fate wisely.
In higher Stakes, where you have to be very selective about the Jokers you take, you rely on the autonomous ability of your hands to make the numbers necessary to advance.Until The Flint completely prevents you from doing so.
Feeling like you have a perfectly on-track build only to find out you’re going to have it all cut in half is definitely a downer.
There are several ways to outperform it to the point where you don’t even realize you’re up against the boss, butthere are also builds that have no chance against The Flint in any conceivable scenario.
7The Needle
One Opportunity
Play only 1 hand
During my hours withBalatro, I concluded the best builds only need one hand to achieve the necessary score to continue.
However, you won’t always have access to the best builds, andthat’s when The Needle comes in to dash your hopes.
If you only have a few discards, rely on multiple hands to achieve good numbers, or simply aren’t at the necessary power for your Ante, you’ll have to restart the game if you face this boss.
It’s not the hardest of its peers, but it’s by far the one that has had me spend more timedoing all the calculations imaginable before making a moveto ensure I have a shot at winning.
It’s Time to Give In to Luck
Cards drawn face down after each hand played
Since information is the key to making decisions in roguelikes,The Fish is the kind of challenge that throws any planning you might have out the window.
If you can’t score enough points to beat it in a single hand, you’ll have to rely on luck to get the combinations that will allow you to do so.
Especially if you’re playing hands that need many specific cards, like Straight, Four of a Kind, or Flush, your chances of winning are close to zero.
You’ll be fine if you’re using High Card or maybe even Pair, but since these builds are rarer and usually score fewer points,The Fish will likely be a headache in your playthrough.
5The Mouth
Goodbye Flush, Goodbye Straight
Only one hand type can be played this round
If you’re like me and enjoy using hands that rely on multiple cards,The Mouth quickly becomes your arch-rival.
The decks I love to play the most are excellent at Straight and Flush, so whenever I run into this particular boss blind, I’ll just start a new game.
Unless I’m extremely overpowered, which is unlikely in higher difficulties, or have some secondary hand that allows me to scrape together the last few points needed, this blind is an insurmountable wall.
WhileBalatroincentivizes you to play the same type of hand through planets and tarot cards,it also traps you with The Mouth, which penalizes you for doing what you should be doing.
4Crimson Heart
Russian Roulette
One random Joker disabled every hand (changes every hand)
Most Jokers have direct or indirect synergies, soeach one plays a role in the builds you’re looking to assemble.
Balatro: 10 Tips & Tricks For Beginners
Having trouble with higher Antes in Balatro? These tips might help you beat the game!
While some give chips, others give a flat or a base multiplier, but they all tend to work in unison to make you watch the numbers go through the roof.
And that’s whyCrimson Heartis a heartbreaking blind boss, taking care of ruining your entire build one turn at a time without giving you the chance to plan ahead.
If you’re lucky, it’ll land on your economy Joker or a secondary one that’s not relevant, but as the Wheel of Fortune card reminds us,you’re most likely not going to be fortunate.
3Verdant Leaf
Sacrifices Must Be Made
All cards debuffed until 1 Joker sold
Everything I’ve said about Crimson Heart applies toVerdant Leaf, just with the added pain of having to directly sell one of yourbeloved Jokers.
When you’re having an outstanding run, it barely feels like a boss, but the difficulty of all the blinds is heightened once you’re in the highest stakes, scraping every last point possible.
Sacrificing one of your Jokers also completely limits your chances of performing well in Endless Mode,making Verdant Leaf especially deadly for those looking to beat their personal bests.
Ultimately,this blind affects so many builds that it’s statistically one of the hardest to beat. Thus, its podium placement is more than justified.
Almost An Instakill
No repeat hand types this round
The sole thing harder than running into The Mouth and only being able to play one type of hand isrunning into The Eye and not being able to repeat them.
Regardless of my number of discards, hand size, and Jokers' quality, this boss blind has been one of the biggest reasons I couldn’t finishBalatroearlier.
The primary way to beat it is to score enough with one hand. But if you reach that point, you don’t care about any boss blinds in general.
Besides, unlike the previous two entries,The Eye can appear at any time from Ante 3 onwards, so he’s lurking for more than half of your game to finish you off.
1Violet Vessel
It’s Better To Just Restart
Very large blind
Beyond strategies, complex solutions, preventions, and so on,Violet Vessel is the ultimate reminder that if you don’t score enough points, you won’t win.
Whether you get them through planets, Jokers, or tarot cards is irrelevant to this blind, whose beastly size makes even the most powerful builds look small.
Although it has the most straightforward effect among bosses, its power is enough to defeat all kinds of runs without distinction, thus displaying its lingering threat.
This is the boss blind that has defeated more players than any other one. If you opt for afun buildagainst Violet Vessel instead of a perfectly designed machine for creating exponential numbers, you’re doomed.
Balatro: 10 Best Common Jokers Ranked
Are you struggling to get through the start of Balatro? This list will highlight strong Common Jokers to help you gain momentum.
