The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Review

   Tears of Joy

For someone who never got the chance to experience the thrilling Rogue-like Dungeon Crawling experience with 2011’s The Binding of Isaac, Rebirth, its remake, successfully accomplishes its main goal of delivering the title to a wider audience with its challenging, addicting and unexpected Zelda-inspired classic gameplay. It’s a balance of luck and skill that never feels unfair or unfun because of the unpredictable nature with its randomly generated room layouts, enemies, power-ups and wacky boss battles, which are the reasons why the game keeps holding your attention, even when restarting a run for the tenth time in a row.

At its core, Rebirth is the exact same game as it was two years ago; Isaac gets rejected by his Mom, which leads him in what seems like a never ending trip down dungeon-like caves and depths, eliminating foes with his Tears of sadness. Since the game has made the switch to the controller-required consoles (which is where the game was played for this review), it plays just like a twin-stick shooter with the Left Stick controlling Isaac’s movement and the Right Stick controlling his Tears. Everything feels natural and responsive when using the control sticks, but what was very surprising is that the control work really well even when using the buttons to guide your projectiles. Sure, it involves a bit more button mashing, but I found myself switching back and forth with those control types because they both felt absolutely fantastic. And that goes for the game’s sense of unpredictability that is present throughout the entire experience as well because of its procedural generation.

Much like any other Rogue-like title, The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth’s unexpectedness is all part of its fun. Every single element in Rebirth is randomized, from its weird and nightmarish enemy creatures and bosses, dungeon layouts filled with secret bombable walls, locked doors, item shops and cryptic items that can make or break your run. You simply never know what you are going to get when you are playing The Binding of Isaac, and it’s the reason why it remains captivating and exciting every single time you go back to it. Though runs are highly dependent on the items placed within the dungeons, there is a huge risk-reward element to picking them up because you don’t know what they’ll do ahead of time. This means that you must constantly make gut-wrenching decisions as to whether or not you’ll replace the current equipment you have, or stick with it as it can drastically change your playstyle for better or worse. It only adds to Rebirth’s sense of discovery that never ends, and that goes for the Isaac veterans as well.

With developer Nicalis taking charge in the development of Rebirth, some small changes have been made with its presentation and overall content, most notably with its visuals and soundtrack. Rebirth kept the same art style as the original game, except it now has a retro-look with 8-bit graphics. This change in the graphical style is very unappealing and, quite frankly, makes the game look worse than it should be, especially when blown up onto a big TV screen. The retro look feels more at home on the PlayStation Vita, which supports Cross-Buy and Cross-Save for Rebirth. Another change I did not understand is with the game’s score. If you compare Danny Bernowsky’s composed soundtrack for the original The Binding of Isaac with Riduculon’s in Rebirth, the former captures the eerie mood, and dark, twisted vibe the game sets off a lot better than with modern orchestral sounds. These things don’t ruin the experience by any means, but they could put off some players who are already familiar with Isaac’s one of a kind look and sound.

In addition, Rebirth also has some exciting new features that enhance the game’s overall replay value, since it is a very short game containing only 6 core levels, despite having procedural generation. There are quite a few Challenges that can be taken on, which will force you in playing a certain way whether it is through darkness, using specific items, or being handicapped in some capacity. It’s no surprise that these burdens are significantly harder than the main game and I recommend knowing your way around Rebirth before taking this mode head-on. However, co-op is where the fun is all at in terms of replay value. Though it is only local Multiplayer-supported, playing with a second character is even more challenging than playing by yourself because one of the three life hearts you start with is removed and given to the second player, whose character traits are totally random. Co-op can also be played in the Challenges as well. The only real downside to co-op is that it isn’t indicated anywhere within the game itself; Rebirth never mentions the fact that it supports up to two players simultaneously. You have to connect a second controller, start a game, and wait for Isaac’s assistant to pop up without any indication whatsoever. It’s mind-boggling that a feature as fun as this is hidden deep inside the game, but, then again, it doesn’t really matter if you don’t plan on playing Rebirth with a buddy of yours. Although I appreciate the added new content, it doesn’t feel like it is enough to justify remaking it, other than to have it available on consoles. I would’ve loved to have some additional levels, even though the game’s replayability is close to infinite because of its procedurally generated structure.

VERDICT

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is a successful remake that keeps the same ingenuity and attraction elements it had when it was first introduced by its creators Edmund McMillen and Florian Himsl on PC. It does have so questionable design decisions as to some of the reworked elements that are present to make it a more modern version of Isaac, but the fun factor and incredible risk-reward element is still here, and nothing quite compares to it. The Binding of Isaac was one of the best Rogue-like games when it was first released and that statement still holds up to this day with Rebirth. Just be ready to cry like Isaac as you’ll most likely die a lot in this game.