The Binding Of Isaac was first released way back in 2011, ushering in a decade of dungeon crawling in the basement, with an abused child forced to battle horrific monsters using his own tears. Since its initial release on PC, Edmund McMillen and Florian Himsl’s masterpiece has been remade, ported to countless other gaming platforms, and iterated upon in numerous expansions.
The latest content for The Binding Of Isaac is allegedly the last that will ever be released, and is more of a remake than simply a DLC, as it provides a major overhaul to a number of the games’ items and systems, as well as providing an onslaught of additional new content. Although some veterans have questioned some of the rebalancing decisions, many believe these changes have made The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance the greatest iteration of the roguelike classic yet.
The Changes Introduced in The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance
The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance retains all of the content from the game’s previous major expansions, specifically The Binding Of Isaac: Rebirth, The Binding Of Isaac: Afterbirth, and The Binding Of Isaac: Afterbirth+. This already gives players a staggering number of bosses to battle, items to collect, pills to pop, and secrets to unearth, with the combinations of possible dungeon configurations and power-ups ensuring high variety.
However, The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance goes even further by introducing a number of other changes, ranging from tiny gameplay tweaks to major alterations. The biggest of these are replacing the game’s multiplayer offering with a proper co-op campaign, and adding even more brand new items for Isaac to collect in his attempt to survive the attacks of his malevolent mother.
The game also introduces new playable characters as well as additional bosses, including an additional true ending and final boss battle. There are also changes to the popular “Greed” and “Greedier” modes, offering more variety to this spin-off game mode that challenges players to defeat waves of enemies while spending their dropped loot wisely.
Why The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance is the Best Iteration Yet
Gamers who have yet to experience The Binding Of Isaac will find Repentance to be the most full and complete version of the game available. Although some criticism has been directed towards the price tag for the next-gen version, anyone who purchases the full game at this price will get a ton of content. Not only does The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance feature numerous game modes, challenge runs, and unlockable secrets, but its randomized nature guarantees virtually endless replayability.
However, the game is also a must for experienced The Binding Of Isaac veterans. The changes and re-balances of familiar items, enemies, and combinations, coupled with the new content, makes the game feel like an entirely new challenge. Even those who have 100% completed the Afterbirth+ expansion will find enough new and brutally difficult gameplay here to keep them busy for weeks, as they try once again to outwit Isaac’s mother from Hell.
The fact that some of the changes made in The Binding Of Isaac: Repentance have proved controversial amongst hardcore fans could also act as an added incentive for players to return to the twisted dungeon crawler. With formerly unstoppable strategies now nerfed and new enemies catching out even the most grizzled Isaac veterans, now is the perfect time for players to revisit the basement and see if they’ve still got what it takes to survive.
The Binding Of Isaac is available now for iOS, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.