Choose Tower of Ascension
Choose Tower of Ascension if you want an Early Access experience. On Steam, it's currently about 83% cheaper on the Steam Store. Tower of Ascension launched in 2022.
Tower of Ascension vs Balatro
Tower of Ascension and Balatro both land in Strategy on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both are Strategy games on Steam. Tower of Ascension (2022) is 2 years older than Balatro (2024). Tower of Ascension is currently ~83% cheaper on Steam than Balatro (1.99 USD vs. 11.99 USD). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Which should you pick?
Choose Balatro
Choose Balatro if you want an Indie and Casual game with Color Alternatives, Custom Volume Controls, and Playable without Timed Input. On Steam, it's Steam Deck Verified, so handheld play works out of the box. 99,852 Steam reviews back the pick.
Both Tower of Ascension and Balatro sit in Strategy on Steam, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Use the side-by-side table for the feature view, or follow the "Games like" links below to see ranked alternatives for either title.
Side-by-side comparison
 Tower of Ascension |  Balatro | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2022 | 2024 |
| Genres | Strategy, Early Access | Strategy, Indie, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows, macOS |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Deck Verified |
| Price | 1.99 USD | 11.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 6 reviews | 98.1% positive (99,852 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Single-player only | Single-player only |
| Developers | OwOInteractive | LocalThunk |
Side by side
- Both are Strategy games on Steam.
- Tower of Ascension (2022) is 2 years older than Balatro (2024).
- Tower of Ascension is currently ~83% cheaper on Steam than Balatro (1.99 USD vs. 11.99 USD).
- Balatro is Deck Verified on Steam Deck; Tower of Ascension has no Deck rating yet.
Tower of Ascension vs Balatro — FAQ
- Should I play Tower of Ascension or Balatro first?
- If you want chronology, Tower of Ascension (2022) came out before Balatro (2024). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are Tower of Ascension and Balatro similar?
- They overlap on Strategy on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.