Balatro
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Information
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Original Soundtrack
Year: 2024
Type: Original Soundtrack (OST)
Composer(s): Luis Clemente (LouisF)
Number of tracks: 05
Rating
Deck swag
But after the first round, the indie game switches gears and turns the usual game of chance into a roguelike with a deck-builder concept. Unlike in poker, we compete in a total of eight rounds against ever-increasing numbers of points that need to be cracked. These are called the small blind, big blind and boss blind, and the last one in particular always comes with a modifier that makes the round more difficult. For example, all heart cards no longer give us any points or one of our jokers is disabled.
Wait: Joker? Exactly! At the heart of Balatro are the jokers, which, alongside tarot and planet cards, modify our deck and can push our multiplier to unimagined heights. We can buy them in the store between rounds and earn the necessary money through victories and interest, just like in Autobattlers. Sounds complicated, but after just a few rounds, the system becomes second nature and provides hours of fun. For 10 bucks in the Android store, you can't go wrong here and, like me, finally learn the value of poker hands along the way.
So much for the actual game. As a puzzle game, Balatro unfortunately does not have a remarkable score. The official soundtrack consists of a total of five tracks. They were composed by LouisF, whose real name is Luis Clemente. Born in Spain, he is not a big name in the music industry himself, but he offers his services - like StudioKannazuki (Long Live the Queen) - on fiverr . There he receives a lot of praise from his business partners. LocalThunk, the inventor of Balatro, writes:
Louis went way above and beyond. He took difficult and specific requirements from me for a soundtrack for an indie game and made a song that is unique, interesting, and was exactly what I wanted. He is professional and his work is incredible!
Developer LocalThunk on LouisF's composition
Well, what does the soundtrack actually sound like? To put it nastily, a bit like lounge music, or elevator music in a positive sense. The Balatro-theme is quite catchy and doesn't get on your nerves even after a long time - that's good. However, the synth droning is not really outstanding either, and the other themes also tend to be more irrelevant than exciting.
Nevertheless, the developer sees Clemente's work as an important component for the success of his game. This is what he writes about the composer on Reddit:
Just FYI for those wondering - yes I was absolutely caught by surprise by the success and so was he, I felt guilty about how much Louis contributed and comparatively how little I paid for his work in hindsight.
Some context: at the time I was incredibly nervous about paying money for this project. This was the first actual money I spent on any of my games. Looking back that seems silly!
That is to say: I’m drawing up a contract so he gets 100% of my cut of the revenue for the soundtrack on Steam (retroactive). He’s more than earned it. If you want to financially support him that’s probably the best way to do it for now!
Developer LocalThunk on LouisF's composition
Nostalgia warning
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Original Soundtrack
| No. | Title | Artist(s) | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Balatro | LouisF [Luis Clemente] |  |
| 02 | Shop Theme | LouisF [Luis Clemente] |  |
| 03 | Tarot Pack Theme | LouisF [Luis Clemente] | |
| 04 | Planet Pack Theme | LouisF [Luis Clemente] |  |
| 05 | Boss Blind Theme | LouisF [Luis Clemente] | |
