The Binding of Isaac: Repentance Review Summary

This fun, addictive, best-in-class roguelike DLC delivers enormous content and replayability, but unfair extreme difficulty and no Mac or Linux support hurt it.

Large Content DLC: The DLC adds a significant amount of content, making the game feel like a whole new experience and providing good value for the price. Many reviewers consider it large enough to be a sequel.

Fun and Addictive: The game is described as fun and addictive once you start playing, with many finding it really fun and entertaining.

Best Roguelike: Reviewers call it the best roguelike on the market, ever, or one of the best in the genre, providing the best roguelike experience.

Overall Positive Game: Reviewers generally praise the game as very good, top-notch, awesome, fun, or a masterpiece.

Reviewer Loves Game: The reviewer expresses strong love for the game, loving everything about it and saying it fills their soul.

No Mac or Linux support: Many players report that the DLC and full game are unavailable on macOS and Linux, unlike previous expansions and the base game. This prevents Mac and Linux users from accessing the new content or playing the complete version.

Difficulty is unfair and extreme: Many players find the new content excessively hard, with unfair enemy designs, unavoidable damage, and overwhelming difficulty spikes. The game is often described as rage-inducing and not fun.

Save files wiped or corrupted: Numerous reports describe save files being reset or corrupted after purchasing the DLC bundle, importing saves, or switching platforms. Players lose all progress and achievements, sometimes irreversibly.

Nerfs reduce fun and synergies: The DLC nerfed many items, synergies, and mechanics that players enjoyed, such as Brimstone, devil deals, and shops. These changes are seen as thoughtless and make runs less enjoyable.

Purchasing and gifting issues: Players cannot buy Repentance for another account, gift it to friends who own other DLCs, or receive the correct DLC when purchasing bundles. The store page and gifting system are confusing and often fail.

Multiplayer and Co-op Support: Multiplayer and co-op modes up to four players are available, with online support in Repentance+. Players can share items or swap trinkets, enhancing the cooperative experience.

Roguelike Gameplay Mechanics: The game is a roguelike with procedurally generated runs, requiring players to adapt to random layouts, enemies, and items. Each run starts from scratch, testing reflexes and rewarding mastery of its systems.

DLC Adds New Content: The DLC expansions introduce new characters, items, bosses, enemies, and mechanics, significantly expanding the game's content. Players must unlock much of this through progression.

Character Unlocks and Progression: The game features numerous unlockable characters, each with distinct abilities and playstyles. Progression involves unlocking characters, items, and content through achievements and challenges.

New Alternate Routes and Bosses: The DLC adds alternative routes like Downpour, Mines, and Mausoleum, featuring new chapters, bosses, and endings. These paths offer tougher enemies and unique encounters.

Steam Deck compatibility issues: Multiple reports indicate the game stops working or becomes unplayable on Steam Deck, especially after the Repentance+ DLC update, and previously working controls have broken.

Frequent crashes in online play: Players experience crashes in roughly one third of online games, and some report constant crashing in online mode.

Game fails to launch: Several users report the game does not open, including Repentance not launching and issues under Steam Linux Runtime 1.0 (scout).

Crashes during normal runs: The game crashes every time a run is started, and PC instability or crashes occur when a synergy is activated.

Repentogon launcher crashes with mods: The Repentogon launcher crashes when certain mods are used, preventing modded play.

DLC is highly recommended: Many reviewers strongly recommend purchasing the DLC, considering it a must-buy and worth the price. They suggest buying all DLCs together with the base game for the best experience.

Game is generally recommended: Across many clusters, players recommend the game, often with high praise and perfect scores. They describe it as a top Steam game and one of the best roguelikes.

Buy full package together: Reviewers recommend purchasing all DLCs together with the base game rather than adding them separately, to get the most complete experience.

DLC worth but expensive: The DLC is considered worth buying despite being expensive, and some suggest waiting for a sale if you can't afford it now.

Not recommended for some: Some reviewers do not recommend the game at all, with one stating it's not worth it even for free. Others specify not to buy if on Mac or if only interested in playing with friends.

Community fair range: $10.00 - $20.00.

Game completion: 500.0h.

Session length: 0.7h.

Endgame: 200.0h.

Reports conflict: many praise immediate fun, while one explicit progression account says fun arrives after early progression friction. Co-op UI gaps, DLC gating, and multiplayer problems are the main blockers for friend-focused players.

Friction: Initial progression is bothersome; Multiplayer trinket swapping can kick friends and end runs; Co-op lacks player 2-4 stat and item UI; True co-op is locked behind a DLC purchase chain; Co-op content is very limited; No easy way to gift the game to a friend for multiplayer.

Unlock drivers: Getting past the initial progression friction.

Veteran Completionist: Long-term grinding across save files, hunting hidden mechanics, and earning every achievement. Motivation: Chasing 100% completion through achievements, unlocks, secrets, and mastery of new content. Stance: buy.

Roguelike Replayability Seeker: Repeated dungeon runs, experimenting with builds, and leaning into unpredictable synergies. Motivation: Endless run-to-run variety and discovering new item synergies. Stance: buy.

Co-op Socializer: Online co-op runs and party-style multiplayer, depending on friends rather than solo progression. Motivation: Playing Isaac with friends in shared runs and social game modes. Stance: no buy.

The Windows <8GB VRAM cohort has limited evidence, with a single recommended report indicating the game can run but may crash at launch if required companion DLCs are missing.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. A 2GB VRAM, 20GB RAM, Windows 10 review recommends the game but warns that it crashes on launch unless the two companion DLCs are also acquired.

Steam Deck: Users report that Repentance and Repentance+ have broken or removed Linux support, with the default Steam Linux Runtime failing to open the game and Steam Deck becoming entirely unplayable after the DLC update. A Proton Hotfix or Windows-under-Proton workaround helps some users, but compatibility is inconsistent and requires manual tinkering, while additional DLC-related launch crashes add further friction.

Linux and Proton: Linux and Proton support for Repentance is workaround-dependent. The DLC removed native Linux support, forcing Linux users onto Proton. The default Steam Linux Runtime can fail to launch, and while switching to Proton Hotfix reportedly works perfectly for one user, others still report the game does not work on Linux and request a native port. Gameplay is reachable for some with compatibility changes, but native support and launch reliability remain rough.

Monetization: The reviews concern paid DLC expansions for a one-time-purchase game. Complaints focus on DLC pricing, gifting/bundle friction, prerequisites for co-op, Mac compatibility, and save-data loss. No review provides direct evidence of real-money gacha, loot boxes, paid currency, boosters, a cash shop, or pay-to-win mechanics. Under the criteria, the traditional DLC and price complaints cannot raise the score above the fair range.

DLC significantly expands content: The DLC adds a large amount of content, nearly doubling the game and offering hundreds of hours of gameplay.

No macOS support: The game is not available on macOS, and the DLC lacks Mac support while previous DLCs had it.

Most extensive expansion: Repentance is described as the most extensive and important expansion for The Binding of Isaac, comparable to a full sequel in size.

DLC sold in bundle: All DLCs are available together in a Steam sale bundle, often sold as a package.

Repentance is the DLC name: The DLC is specifically called Repentance, an expansion for the game.