Action · September 28, 2011
The Binding of Isaac (2011)
When Isaac’s mother starts hearing the voice of God demanding a sacrifice be made to prove her faith, Isaac escapes into the basement facing droves of deranged enemies, lost brothers and sisters, his fears, and eventually his mother. The Binding of Isaac is a randomly generated action RPG shooter with heavy Rogue-like elements. Following Isaac on his journey players will find bizarre treasures that change Isaac’s form giving him super human abilities and enabling him to fight off droves of mysterious creatures, discover secrets and fight his way to safety. Key features: Randomly generated dungeons, items enemies and bosses, you never play the same game twice. Over 100 unique items that not only give you powers but visually change your character. 50+ enemy types each with the ability to become 'special' making them extra deadly but they also drop better loot. Over 20 bosses. 4 full chapters spanning 8 levels 3+ unlockable classes Multiple endings Tons of unlockable items, enemies, bosses and more.
Action releases from 2011
54 Action titles launched in 2011 — top 6 by review volume.
Position in Action
| Metric | This title | Genre position |
|---|---|---|
| Review volume | 60.4k Steam reviews | Top 10% in Action |
| Positive rating | 95% positive | Genre average: 83% — this title sits in top 14% |
| Metacritic | 84/100 | Genre average 77 — top 22% of Action titles |
| Concurrent peak | 213 players | Top 24% in Action by live player count |
| Engagement hours | 25 h average | Top 19% for session depth among Action |
Community Tag Signals
Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.
- Action Roguelike · 2.4k
- Rogue-like · 2.3k
- Indie · 2.0k
- Replay Value · 1.3k
- Difficult · 1.3k
- Procedural Generation · 952
- Dark · 926
- Action · 895
- Top-Down · 719
- Great Soundtrack · 710
- Addictive · 647
- Singleplayer · 641
- Adventure · 546
- Rogue-lite · 486
- 2D · 415
Peer Action titles
Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.
Reception Metrics
Steam community
95%Overwhelmingly Positive · 60.4k reviews
57.4k positive · 3.0k negative
Metacritic
84/100 critic aggregate
Metacritic user score
8.3/10
Curator recommendations
47.8k
Peak concurrent players
213
Engagement Profile
All-time avg
25h
moderate (15–40 hours)
Median
6h
Typical completion time
2-week avg
0h
Current engagement
Achievements
99
Steam unlocks available
Release & Availability
| Release date | Sep 28, 2011 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Edmund McMillen, Florian Himsl |
| Publisher | Edmund McMillen |
| Base price | $1.64 -67% |
| DLC / Add-ons | 1 released |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS |
| Estimated owners | 1M–10M |
| External links | Metacritic page · [email protected] |
Features & Capabilities
Community
- Steam Achievements
- Steam Trading Cards
Other
- Single-player
- Family Sharing
Editions & Packages
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