Balatro GBA

This is an attempt to recreate the game 'Balatro' as accurately as possible, including all of the visual effects that make Balatro feel satisfying to play.

This port is strictly limited to the content that was available in the January 2024 Balatro Steam demo.

Disclaimer: This project is NOT endorsed or supported by Playstack or LocalThunk

This project is solely aimed to recreate Balatro's old demo on the Game Boy Advance and is not meant to infringe or draw sales away from the full game's release or any of the established works by Playstack and LocalThunk. All rights are reserved to their respective holders.

Build Instructions:

-Windows-

1. Install devkitPro from https://github.com/devkitPro/installer by downloading the latest release.
2. Execute it and follow the installation instructions, you only need to install the tools for the GBA development so ensure you have it selected and install it to the default directory.
3. Go to the Start Menu and search for MSys2 and open it.
4. Install Git by typing this command: pacman -S git if you don't have it already installed.
5. Navigate to where you want to clone the project such as your desktop or Documents folder. The easiest way to properly cd to the directory is to type cd and drag and drop the folder into the terminal window and press Enter. Example: cd '/home/user/OneDrive/Documents/balatro-gba or something like this.
6. Clone the project with git clone --recursive https://github.com/cellos51/balatro-gba.git in the terminal window.
7. Use cd and drag the newly generated folder into the window to add the file path and press Enter.
8. Type make into the window and press Enter to start building the game.
9. After it completes, navigate through the build directory in the project folder and look for balatro-gba.gba and load it on an emulator or flashcart.

-Linux-

[Not Available]

Common Issues:

1. When I drag the folder into the window and press enter, it doesn't work! -After dragging the folder, press the right or left arrow key until the text is no longer highlighted and then press enter.
2. When I run make it errors out and won't compile! -Move the project folder to your desktop and then cd to it by dragging the folder into the terminal window after typing cd first.
3. I can't find the build folder! -Look for a folder called build inside the project folder and then find balatro-gba.gba.
4. The Game won't start! -Try a different emulator or if you are using original hardware, make sure the rom is not corrupted and try a different flashcart or SD Card. If this does not work, open an issue on the Github page because a recent commit may have broke the game.
5. It says I don't have Git or Make installed! -Use pacman -S git or pacman -S make although it should already be installed if you followed the instructions correctly.

Purchasing the official game is highly recommended and almost mandatory in order for this project to have a chance of staying up due to copyright issues and potential legal action.

Purchase the Steam Version here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2379780/Balatro/