Published , by Donovan Erskine
Published , by Donovan Erskine
With 2024 coming to a close, everyone has been discussing their favorite games of the year and naming the titles that stood above the rest. This includes LocalThunk, the solo developer behind indie hit Balatro. LocalThunk has announced that his personal Game of the Year for 2024 was another indie sensation, Animal Well.
LocalThunk announced Animal Well as their Game of the Year in a post on X last Friday. “Animal Well was an engrossing experience,” they wrote. “Dripping with style, secrets, and making me feel like an imposter in this industry as a dev, Billy Basso created a true masterpiece.” In his response, Basso named LocalThunk the “Nicest Most Humble Dev of the Year.”
In subsequent posts, LocalThunk provided a list of runners up titles that he highly recommends. The list includes Dungeons and Degenerate Gamblers, a roguelike deck-builder that has drawn comparisons to LocalThunk’s own game, but as the dev clarifies in this post, was actually announced before Balatro. Other listed games include Arco, Nova Drift, Ballionaire, and Mouthwashing.
Balatro enchanted the gaming industry in 2024 and was named Shacknews’ Game of the Year. With all the newfound attention, LocalThunk is hoping that these shoutouts will put some extra eyeballs on other great indies from last year.