Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 30 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 526 Ratings

  • Summary: Isaac is a roguelike shooter based on the dungeon structure of Zelda (nes). At its core it controls like Smash TV / Robotron in a randomly generated semi RPG world filled with powerups items and special abilities.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 30
  2. Negative: 0 out of 30
  1. Oct 16, 2011
    100
    The Binding Of Isaac is pitch-black and hard as hell.
  2. Sep 29, 2011
    100
    The Binding of Isaac is a loony action/adventure game with a Kawai Gore atmosphere, random challenges and a varied gameplay. Thanks to the talent of the developers, the formula works perfectly well and draws you back in easily to slaughter some more, or see the poor Isaac being bludgeoned violently.
  3. Dec 17, 2011
    85
    If you don't mind the relative difficulty and dark overtones, forget that footlong and invest your $5 in Isaac. [Feb 2012, p.79]
  4. 70
    Stylish indie action game you can play over and over again. Sometimes frustrating because of its high difficulty setting but overall Isaac is pure fun. [Nov 2011]

See all 30 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 22 out of 179
  1. A fine game with a lot of replayability in this game. Tons of items to collect. I would recommend buying the DLC: Wraith of Lamb. It extends the game by a lot. The game takes only a bit to master and adjust to the controls. The story can and has been interpreted many different ways. I find it very entertaining. Expand
  2. 8
    Surprisingly addictive as the game looks completely outdated and a very pale copy of a Zelda-like. However, the cleverness resides in the rogue approach and the tons of items and upgrades that make each game very different and the replay value humongous. You get yourself caught playing game after game after game and each experience is truly unique. Warning though: this game is not for everyone. You better have a good dose of black humor because the background is very sordid. Expand
  3. 7
    Realtime lightweight roguelike? How's that work then?

    Rogue, for those not blessed with the beard of brian, is a turnbased RPG of such profo
    und depth that it's basically impossible to finish. Each game is procedurally generated, and each turn has so many possible actions that they take an entire keyboard of hotkeys to interact. So how does that translate to the twitch-gaming we've come to expect from the creator of Super Meatboy?

    The answer is that it doesn't. While Binding of Isaac does share familial resemblance to Rogue, it isn't in the depth of options available. At any point, it's still Smash TV-esque run and shoot. Where it is like Rogue is that you will collect many things, and you will die. A lot. And it won't always be your fault, but you'll still start one more game just to see what kind of hellish abomination of death and destruction you'll become this time, before once again you meet a bigger one. It's a game to be played, not a game to be won.

    It's not without flaws, the controls do feel like they should be tighter, and to be honest you generally feel like your weapons are just pissing up the wall - occasionally literally. It's not a game that will dominate your life, but it is probably a game that you'll still be coming back to in six months' time.
    Expand
  4. 4
    If you enjoy mashing your keyboard or find poop and blood to be a refreshing stylistic feature you may briefly enjoy this game. However, if that's not the case I suggest you pass this game by. The gameplay is mindnumbingly uninteresting. The style of this game while somewhat unique is rather lame. Controls are horrible, you basically just mash the keyboard. The use of a gamepad isn't support, the menu system itself points you towards using another peice of software to map your keyboard keys to a gamepad. Now that's just lazy programming. Don't let the high score fool you. People have a tendency to over compensate when rating inexpensive games. This game has only two things going for it in my opinion. First the introductory sequence is enjoyable, but only so much as anyother well done flash animation. Which makes sense since it is a flash animation. Second it is hard. Which is refreshing in this day and age of super easy hand holding games. However forcing you to reply the same boring game play over and over each time you die beings to quicly feal like torture. 0.99 would be a far better price as the content much more closly resembles a smartphone app priced at that level. Expand

See all 179 User Reviews