With Balatro exploding in popularity over the last year or so, one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the game’s development and release is one that has yet to be solved: just who is developer LocalThunk?
Well, if you happen to be particularly keen to find out, we’d urge you to keep your expectations in check. According to an interview with Playstack’s communications director Wout van Halderen over on PC Gamer, LocalThunk’s decision to remain anonymous wasn’t out of some desire to consciously play up the mystery and mischievousness of the game, but rather so he could simply be left alone to work on development.
“I do think his anonymity became the story at some point, ’cause people thought he was trying to pull a Banksy and be, like, this anonymous developer, but that’s not why he did it. He just wanted to be left alone to make his game and live his life.”
It’s not like LocalThunk has stayed completely out of the spotlight, either. He recently released a full breakdown of the game’s development via a blog post, opening up on his mental health struggles and the sheer elation he felt when the game launched to critical acclaim.
The point is, it doesn’t sound like we’re going to find out exactly who LocalThunk is anytime soon. Balatro’s development remains ongoing, with the most recent update featuring crossovers with Assassin’s Creed, Fallout, Civilization, and more. We’re quite happy to let LocalThunk plug away in peace if it means we get even more content in the months ahead.
