If you can put Balatro down for half a second, the lead developer behind it has come up with another gorgeous Indie with a very low-key awards show.

Balatro is obviously one of the best games from 2024, and now the developer behind it has shared what they think are the top titles from last year.

If you want to just lie about it, 2024 was a quieter year than 2023 on the video game front, except that it wasn't because there were a ton of good titles coming out, it wasn't they can all afford expensive ads. as the triple-A ones might. Our own team has been identified some of the likebut we weren't the only ones who did that. One of the biggest surprises from 2024 was easily Balatro, a small roguelike poker game that is all about making a number go big, and a title that many of us have poured too many hours into. So, to spread some of that independent love, developer Balatro LocalThunk took the time to explain their personal favorites from 2024.

Taking first place with LocalThunk's own “Prestigious Golden Thunk Award for Game of the Year 2024” is Animal Wella metroidvania that definitely stands out on its own merits, although admittedly this is the first game published by that horse V-tuber or whatever Videogamedunkey is under his new company Bigmode. “Animal Well was an interesting experience,” wrote LocalThunk. “Driving with style, secrets, and making me feel like an imposter in this business as a developer, Billy Basso created a true masterpiece -work.”

The love didn't stop there though, as there were runners-up, such as Dungeons and Degenerate Gamblers, which LocalThunk said: “People mistakenly wrote this as a Balatro clone but this was announced before my game ever . synergistic and strategic deck builder I've put in countless hours.”

Arco, Nova Drift, and Ballionaire also got a few nods, side by side Washing mouth, one of my favorite games from 2024with LocalThunk saying, “I didn't even know this was a horror game when I started playing it at 11pm one terrible night. clearly months later.