Balatro: Best Premium Mobile Launch Since Minecraft?

Balatro: Best Premium Mobile Launch Since Minecraft?

$15M in just half a year — the GOTY-winning card-building roguelike Balatro is now one of the most successful premium mobile launches ever.

For this AppMagic chart, I picked ten of the most notable indie mobile releases:

I already posted when Balatro reached $1.5M in monthly revenue, but I had to follow up, as it recently peaked at $4.6M. That’s more than 3x growth!

Balatro exceeded all my expectations, outperforming every major indie mobile launch in recent memory — except Minecraft, which is in a league of its own.

Why is it working so well?

First of all, it’s an outstanding game.

Better yet, it’s a perfect fit for mobile. Like other games in the chart, Balatro follows the rules of mobile gaming:

— Shorter play sessions
— Lower prices
— Simpler controls
— Solid performance across a wide range of devices

🤫 That’s exactly why indie games often land better on mobile than AAA titles like Assassin’s Creed, Resident Evil, or my personal favorite, Death Stranding.

And this chart doesn’t even include Balatro’s performance on Apple Arcade…

Curious to see how it performs long-term — but at this rate, it may soon become the highest-grossing premium mobile game after Minecraft. 🃏