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From Big Two To A Naive Deckbuilder
- LocalThunk started Balatro as an online Big Two project for friends and then pivoted after watching Luck be a Landlord videos.
- He intentionally avoided playing deckbuilders to explore the genre naively and make unique design choices.
Base Value Versus Scaling For Hands
- Balatro separates base hand value from scaling to reflect how easy each hand is to push later in a run.
- Hands that are easier to build get lower scaling while rare, hard-to-push hands scale faster.
Balance By Feel, Then Tune With Players
- Avoid over-optimizing balance with spreadsheets; iterate by feel and watch players adapt in the wild.
- Push updates, observe player behavior, and adjust numbers to achieve a visually balanced experience.