The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is the remake of the famous indie game The Binding of Isaac and was first released in 2014. The remake was designed by Edmund McMillen and developed by Nicalis. Just like in the original game, players control Isaac and other unlockable characters with different assets.

Plot

The story of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is similar to the original game. A boy named Isaac lives happily with his mother when she starts hearing what she believes to be God: God asks her to save her boy from his sins by taking away his toys and later, to prove her devotion by sacrificing him. This is when Isaac jumps into a trap in his room that leads him to the basement of the house: unfortunately, Isaac's nightmare doesn't end there and it's only the beginning.

Gameplay

Here are some of the main features of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth:

Gameplay: Although new elements have been added, the gameplay is similar to the original game. In this top-down 2D roguelike, Isaac is trying to escape from his Mom and is wandering in procedurally-generated rooms. The character uses his tears to fight the monsters and collects various items along the way. Like a multidirectional shooter, the character shoots in different directions, and dying too much leads to permanent death. Players have the possibility to save the game seed and share it with others so they can try the same layout.

Characters: In total, there are 11 The Binding of Isaac characters, plus 23 more in the DLCs. Each of these characters comes with different stats, styles, and abilities. The complete list of characters is available online.
Items: There is a rich catalog of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth items - the base game has 341 items and with the items of the DLCs this number grows to a total of 716. Some of them passive and others are active - you can even check the full list.

What is the difference between The Binding of Isaac and Rebirth?

As mentioned above, The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is a remake of the original game. It has improved graphics, more playable characters, as well as items. Edmund McMillen - the original creator - is still at the heart of the game but the official developer is Nicalis.

Is The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth free?

No, the game is not free. It can be purchased for $14.99.

What do the critics say?

The game was received very positively and has a score of 86 points on Metacritic:

”The time I’ve spent with Binding of Isaac: Rebirth has been non-stop fun and surprises, with just a tad too much frustration when I lose a rare item.” (IGN)