In a recent discussion featured in the 2026 GDC Trends Report, Patrick Johnson, the head of discovery at Playstack, shared insights into the indie publisher’s early involvement with PCG’s anticipated 2024 game of the year, Balatro. Johnson emphasized that there are no shortcuts or glamorous secrets in the world of game publishing; rather, it is a matter of diligent effort and steadfast commitment.
Scouting for Success
“One thing that we do at Playstack is we scout,” Johnson explained. “We examine games across a variety of platforms. Part of my role involves reviewing every game that appears on Steam daily, whenever possible.” This thorough approach underscores Playstack’s dedication to identifying promising titles, even when they are not yet widely recognized.
Despite the prevailing skepticism about the significance of Steam wishlists as a predictor of a game’s success, Playstack remained optimistic. Johnson noted, “We don’t believe they’re quite as important as they used to be.” This perspective made their decision to support Balatro particularly intriguing, as the game was relatively obscure at the time. “Balatro came through on Steam, and it didn’t have many followers to begin with. It didn’t have many wishlists on the platform. But it looked interesting. We thought, ‘That’s a cool-looking game. We should reach out and just try it.’”
In a moment of serendipity, Johnson reached out to LocalThunk, the game’s developer, via Twitter, where he had only a handful of followers. LocalThunk later reflected on this pivotal interaction: “I got a DM on Twitter from a scout at Playstack, my eventual publisher. I was super excited, but this also complicated things. This was a very tumultuous time in the history of the game because I was in limbo between ‘Nothing will come of this game and I want to move on with my life’ and ‘What if I could do this as a job?'”
While it is conceivable that another entity could have recognized Balatro’s potential and provided LocalThunk with the necessary resources to transition from a day job to game development, such outcomes are never guaranteed. Johnson’s commitment to sifting through the vast array of new games on Steam proved invaluable. “We were in there really early. And I think that made the key difference,” he remarked. “Obviously, I’d like to think we were a great partner for the game, but just the speed at which we could move out was very important for that time.”
In other developments, Playstack appears to be on the verge of a significant transition, having received an enticing offer from Integrated Media Company (IMC), a subsidiary of the private equity group TPG, which owns notable brands such as Fandom, GameSpot, Curse, and TV Guide. TrueFin, Playstack’s current owner, is seeking approval for a 1 million deal to sell its majority stake to IMC, marking a potential new chapter for the indie publisher.
