Balatro 1.1 has been teased by the game’s creator, LocalThunk, for over a year, and while the wait goes on, they’ve finally shown their hand somewhat with a peek at new mechanics, Jokers, and fundamental gameplay tweaks.
Balatro is one of the best video games ever. There, I said it. I probably have over 200 hours in it, which are probably rookie numbers, to be honest. I haven’t gotten enough since it rocked the gaming landscape, and while I’ve had a great time Joker-ing around with it, I need the long-awaited 1.1 update, which should evidently be a game-changer.
LocalThunk Sorry About Balatro 1.1 Update
If you didn’t know, developer LocalThunk is the sole creator of Balatro, although he has had help from YouTuber Balatro University. All the work and updates are done by the one dev, and they’ve been working tirelessly on the 1.1 update. Balatro has largely remained untouched since it debuted in 2024, but this will change.
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LocalThunk recently popped up on the Balatro Discord with many messages to the game’s millions of fans, including an apology about how long the update is taking:
‘I’m happy the leaks are going over so well. I know you guys want to know as much as possible about 1.1 but I can’t give away too much. I know it’s taken a very long time and I’ve completely blown past the 2025 timeframe but I promise I’m cooking in the way that is both best for me and ultimately for the game.
Sorry about the 2025 thing, I never should have given a release window, especially when I’m the only guy working on it and there never really was any pressure to announce it. I understand how frustrating that must be and I wish I could go back in time and slap some sense into myself. At the time it was still go-go-go and I never even considered that I could allow myself to stop, then after mobile came out I was just so burnt out I couldn’t touch the game for a bit. Luckily things have changed.
I’ll pop in here every now and then to give you the whole ‘yes I’m still working on 1.1!’ message and possibly give a few more leaks, but I won’t give concrete details about a launch window. It’s entirely possible that after everything is completed, I want to scrap something large or expand on something (I feel like I already have). I don’t want this to be half baked and wreck Balatro, I love the game too and I want to play a fun game not a rushed botch job.
On the personal side, I truly am having the best time making the game now. This past year of dev has been probably the most fulfilling work I’ve ever done, including pre launch times when it was a little hobby project. I’m trying to keep offline as much as possible because that’s a recipe that works well for me but I’ll ease back in when 1.1 is ready to go.’
The dev did talk about the 1.1 update, and while it’s probably still going to be a while off yet, we understand more about what they’ve been working on.
A post on the Balatro Reddit (by trevorade) has nicely summarized the majority of mentions:
- A tier 2 voucher named “Lunker”
- The algorithm for picking the next voucher will bias Tier 2 a bit more. (Specifically, if you have N tier 1 vouchers of M incomplete voucher sets, you will have an N in M chance to get a tier 2 voucher at voucher draw time)
- New mechanic! “When a card is drawn to hand.” Triggers in rounds as well as Tarot and Spectral packs. E.g. you could have a joker: “Ace up your Sleeve”, “+1 Mult when an Ace is Drawn To Hand.”
- There will in fact be at least 4 new jokers (previously reported there were at least 2 new jokers)
- Blue stakes have been reworked (he had a previous blue stakes rework but switched to a new blue stakes a few months ago and he likes it a lot more and reports it fits much better)
- In the 1.1 update, blue stakes and joker reworks will always apply but a checkbox in the profile will enable new content (e.g. vouchers and jokers). Achievements will still be possible with 1.1 new content checked off
- Steam will have a 1.0 branch selectable after 1.1 for legacy mod support.
- No Balatro 1.2 planned. He truly expects to release 1.1.0 then 1.1.1 a few months later with bug fixes and balance tweaks and that will be it.
- No multiplayer version of Balatro planned
- He uses placeholder art while he works on the game (see smiley card)
- The pictured smiley joker is for a new joker called “Survey” that “does the thing with the face cards, you know”
LocalThunk thinks outlets wouldn’t cover the ‘When a card is drawn to hand’ mechanic, but if you know your Balatro, then you’ll know this could drastically alter your score potential and get you out of a bind…or Blind—I’ve got you, LocalThunk.
A new voucher, new Jokers, and no 1.2 in sight, which means this could be the big bang for Balatro. What a ride it’s been.
Will the Balatro 1.1 update be the best update ever? Let us know what you think via the Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Andy is Insider Gaming's Senior Evergreen Editor and has been in the games journalism sphere in one way or another for over 7 years. His video game taste is as…
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