You don't experience something like that every day: the indie hit Balatro is currently being celebrated by fans and critics. On Metacritic, the addictive rogue-like has already achieved ratings between 88 and 91, a real surprise success. Balatro also did really well in our test; the simple gameplay has already captivated us for dozens of hours. Since the game doesn't have any action, violence or fight scenes, Balatro is actually suitable for the whole family, after all you're only dealing with simple poker cards. But that's exactly what's becoming a problem for Balatro.
Completely unexpectedly, the game's USK age rating from 0 years (PEGI 3) was revoked. Since then, Balatro has no longer been available for purchase on Nintendo eShop! You can still purchase the game normally in other stores such as Steam, but the age reference has simply been removed here. Things look different again in the Microsoft and Sony shops: There, Balatro (buy now €12.59) is now shown with an age rating of 16 years and over.
In some countries, the game has apparently been (temporarily) removed from digital stores, causing the creators to lose important revenue.
What's going on again? In a detailed statement The publisher Playstack Games speaks up and explains with frustration what happened behind the scenes.
Developers no longer understand the world
First, the team confirms that Balatro did indeed have to be temporarily removed from some digital stores in several countries. It is also emphasized that the problem is expressly not the fault of the respective shop operators. So Sony, Valve, Microsoft or Nintendo are not to blame.
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Instead, a classification authority should be responsible for the whole mess. According to Playstack, they removed the game's rating from 3+ without any warning and surprisingly increased it to 18+. In short: Balatro went from being released for small children to becoming an adult title overnight.
Don't you know Balatro yet? In our test you can read everything you need to know about the surprise hit. In our gallery you can also quickly see how the clever game is structured.
Balatro for adults only?
The authority apparently cites “prominent gambling images and materials that encourage gambling” as the reason. Completely incomprehensible for Playstack Games: The developers of LocalThunk are strictly against gambling and have therefore taken pains to ensure that Balatro does not contain any mechanics in this regard. As a reminder: The poker cards in Balatro only serve as a mechanical basis for a tactical roguelike that is more focused on deck building and a good portion of luck.
Particularly frustrating: According to Playstack, these exact points were already discussed in detail with the review committee last October. For this reason, Balatro was ultimately rated 3+ and not – as originally intended – with a release from 18. Playstack was assured that the game neither trivialized gambling nor created incentives for it.
After all, if you already own Balatro on the platform of your choice, you have nothing to fear: once you have purchased it, you will always have access to the game, with or without age rating.
And what's next?
Apparently Balatro needs to be checked again before it can be sold again via the Nintendo eShop in some countries. Sony and Microsoft make do with the blue 16+ seal, although the USK website doesn't even list the game among the tested titles. It remains to be seen whether the USK 16 is final or just temporary. We have already asked USK and BzKJ (Federal Center for Child and Youth Media Protection) and asked for a statement.