I truly thought that I was done running into the basement in The Binding of Isaac: Repentance. Not because I don’t enjoy the iconic, chaotic, rogue-like game, I adore it, but because I couldn’t imagine Edmund McMillen and Nicalis could fit more content into this truly massive adventure. And then they announced The Binding of Isaac: Repentance+.
While they technically didn’t add any new content, they did do a couple of really important things. Firstly, they finally added item descriptions, something I’ve been dying to have for years. The other big change was that they added substantial multiplayer, both locally and online with up to 3 others.
Though I don’t usually jump back into a game for that sort of thing, I had to see how Repentance+ played on the Switch 2. And after spending more than 40 hours with this latest and greatest version of the game, I think this is the perfect swan song for The Binding of Isaac.
Back Into the Basement
Like I never left!
The first pleasant surprise upon booting up The Binding of Isaac: Repentance+ was that all my progress from nearly 300 hours with Repentance was retained and implemented perfectly, even from my physical Afterbirth+ cartridge. Which meant that I could just jump back immediately into the action.
Though part of me worried I would be rusty, since it’s been at least a couple years since I last played The Binding of Isaac, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. It turns out, slaughtering abominations in the basement is just like riding a bike, and I instantly went to do the one thing I hadn’t yet accomplished – killing the Beast.
Make It Die!
Even though the Beast was present in the original Repentance DLC, I hadn’t beaten it. It takes very careful adventuring to find and craft a special knife, then using tarot cards to warp to a particular door. And then, I had to fight my way through every floor I had previously beaten to get back to the final dungeon.
Afterwards, I had to fight my way through a horrifying twofer called Dogma+, as well as destroying the four horsemen just to get to the Beast. But I can say with confidence that I’ve not only beaten it, but I’ve done so with nearly the entire roster in the game (except for the nightmare that is Jacob and Esau).
Nailed it!
One thing that became quickly clear as I played through Repentance+ was that it’s noticeably faster and more responsive on Switch 2. So much so that a couple of foes got cheap hits in, much to my surprise. The game is still very fair, and so long as you learn and react to the enemy attacks, you’ll do fine, though lucking into powerful upgrades also helps. I even discovered some new stuff, such as attacking with floating fetuses, which is super gross, and also one of my favorite things.
More impressive than the enhanced framerate was the game’s improved audio. I remember The Binding of Isaac being pretty muted as I played on PC, Vita and Switch, only occasionally hearing a grunt or moan of despair. This time around, the audio was so precise and crisp that on the Beast route, I could clearly hear Isaac’s mother and father arguing in the background, and actually felt some sympathy for the deranged, knife-wielding matriarch.
Nerdy Details FTW
By far the best part of Repentance+, though, is the item descriptions. You only have to unlock them once, and then can toggle them on or off from the pause screen. It saves so much time knowing exactly what items do, and it even led to me trying out stuff I wasn’t sure about before, such as the Forget Me Now, or even being emboldened by the fact that my Match Stick doesn’t just make it more likely to find bombs, but can also remove the dreaded Tick.
I also relished new transformations courtesy of the Planetarium, such as making Isaac a very farty gas giant, or summoning dreadful waters as Neptunus. There’s just so much content here, that even years later, I’m still discovering stuff.
What’s a Little Murder Between Friends?
Now, everything I’ve already mentioned is quite exciting, especially as a longtime fan of the game. But the other big change, the online play, was also outstanding, with one proviso. The first couple of times I tried it out, I suffered from intense lag, but once it matched me with players closer to me, it ran incredibly smoothly, and we even tackled the likes of Greed together.
What’s best about the online play is you can just jump into a random session, or you can join a room a friend set up. Either way, the game is much different and more chaotic with others. If you need a breather, you can revive your allies with a handful of coins.
For my part, I got to test multiplayer out with members of the development team and QA at Nicalis. I was proud to hold my own with the likes of them. At the end of a run, you’ll all turn knives on each other to determine the big winner, which was totally unexpected and quite fun.
So fun it’s a sin.
While The Binding of Isaac: Repentance+ is out soon, there’s still stuff coming down the pipe. Namely, the game will feature Cross Save on Day 1, but there’s still crossplay between systems coming later on. Which honestly could make an already incredible adventure just a touch better, which is impressive.
Never Stop Crying
Even though I was initially disappointed that there was nothing “new” about Repentance+, after playing it for a long while, I can attest this is the best version of one of my favorite videogames. It runs faster and smoother, boasts online play like never before, and even rebalances difficulty and offers item descriptions for longtime fans. Even if you’ve never played The Binding of Isaac before, you have good reason to revel in it on modern consoles and PC.
Final Verdict: 5/5
Available on: Switch 2 (reviewed), PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S; Publisher: Nicalis; Developer: Edmund McMillen, Nicalis; Players: 1-4; Released: November 19th, 2026; ESRB: M for Mature; MSRP: $59.99 (digital), $69.99 (physical), $9.99 (standalone DLC)
Editor’s note: The publisher provided a review copy to Hey Poor Player.
Story via the original publisher. Read the original article
