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Genre/Control

Specific tags for the title's features

Ranking

Similarity & Review

Review

Multiple Sources

Similarity

Compared to VS. Not a review!

Similarity Scale

Percentage of possible points earned scored -1 to 1 in tenths in 60 categories

Genre Controls Modes Progress Builds Stages Content Aesthetic Vibe
[edit]

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth

DLC Free Available Released

Very Different. An earlier style of game if you want a difficult rogue-lite that feels close to a real time rogue-like, focused on room based exploration. Greed mode, however, introduced in Afterbirth, is a wave survival mode, with an endless mode possible. No currency unlocks, more a bullet hell than bullet haven, and other aspects make this a very different kind of game, despite how it gets recommended often to Vampire Survivor Fans. Knocks it out of the park in terms of content breadth and replayability. I'm fucking terrible at it.

Dungeon Crawler Roguelite Story Rich Top Down or Isometric Twin Stick Shooter Wave Survival
7.5 Combined Ranking Score
35/72 Ranking Position
1310/1600 Total Points
9.5 Final Review
97% Steam
9.8 Scale
8.9 Vibes
230286 Steam Reviews
384/400 Review Points
5.4 Similarity Score
77% Diagnosis:
Very Different
926/1200 Comparison Points
70% Genre 3.2/8 genre
26% Simple Controls -3.3/7 move
70% Survival Modes 1.6/4 modes
50% Power Progression 0/4 level
86% Buildcrafting Depth 3.6/5 build
100% Stage Features 7/7 stage
100% Content Breadth 9/9 stuff
91% Aesthetics 4.9/6 style
88% Gameplay Vibe Check 7.6/10 vibe vibe

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 7.0

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/20/2023

Released in several versions, but we'll just consider them all one thing to rank here. Played on Newgrounds, played "Classic" (now labeled as such) on steam for 3 or so hours, Rebirth and Afterbirth on Switch for a fair amount longer. Let's call transformations weapon evolutions. Daily challenges are available on top of hard mode, etc. It's got an insane amount of content at this point if you get all the DLC, later releases or the last switch release. True fans know a million secrets and how to do insane things on the first run on a fresh save, folks like me struggle to make it through 4 rooms. Endlessly replayable if you love it.

This is a rogue-lite but it's way stressful and not, for me, 'zen' at all. It's not a bullet heaven. If you like short runs it might hit the spot, but it's sooooo different. I suck at it too. It's got an iconic style and really personifies an era, but I also admit I'm not that into it personally.

Some aspects feel a little edgy just to be edgy and it's funny for a bit, but when I'm sucking at the game it doesn't pull me back in, impacting my vibe score. But gave it full review scores since it just seems right.

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

5.4 Similarity Score
77% Diagnosis:
926/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 1/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle -1/1
Real Time 1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) 0.2/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) -1/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) -1/1
Move Only -1/1
No Dash 0.5/1
No Trigger -1/1
No Special Move -0.6/1
No Aiming -1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 0.8/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival 0.8/1
Endless Mode 0.8/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 0/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event -1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 0/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks 0/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks 1/1
Build Crafting 0.1/1
0.5/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 1/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 1/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible 1/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 1/1
Health on Ground 1/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 1/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 1/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 1/1
Many Interesting Characters 1/1
Many Challenges 1/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 1/1
Bestiary / Lore 1/1
Achievements 1/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 0/1
Lofi Charm 0.9/1
Bumpin Music 1/1
Fun Writing 1/1
Subtle Humor 1/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.1/1
Over the Top 0.7/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 1/1
Difficulty Ramp 0.7/1
Fun Ramp 0.8/1
Low Price 0.3/1
Technical Check 1/1
Controls Check 1/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS 0/1

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

9.5 Final Review
97% Positive Steam Reviews
230286 Steam Reviews
8.9 Pure Vibes
9.8 Review Scale
384/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 1/1
Controller and Deck 1/1
Lots of Content 1/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 0.8/1

Metacritic Scores

- +

This title has metacritic data! The "fuck the man" score is adjusted so each person's review is equally weighted, regardless of critic or fan status.

Critic

8.4 Converted 10 Point Score
30 Number of Critic Reviews

User

8.3 User Review Average
1128 Number of User Reviews

Average

8.4 Direct Average
8.3 "Fuck The Man" Combined Mean

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

3DSEpiciOSPS4PS5Steam DeckSwitchVitaWii UWindows PCXboxDLCFree AvailableReleased

Sorting Categories

Very Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

Dungeon CrawlerRogueliteStory RichTop Down or IsometricTwin Stick ShooterWave Survival

Aesthetic Tags

2DBrowser GameCartoonPixel ArtUglycute

Setting / Story Tags

ComedyDungeonsGrossoutHorrorHorror ThemedUnderworld

Control Styles

Controller

Game Mode Tags

Holiday Event45m

Features and Extras

SoundtrackSteam AchievementsSteam CloudSteam Trading Cards

Dev/Publisher

Edmund McMillenInc.Nicalis

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: Co-Op
  • Online: Co-Op
  • Player Count: 4
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: Yes
  • Steam Achievements: Yes
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: Yes

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: Yes
  • DLC Available: Yes
  • Soundtrack Available: Steam Bandcamp Spotify Amazon Apple YouTube

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth 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."

"Over 500 hours of gameplay" "Over 100 co-op characters" "4 BILLION Seeded runs!"

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 45m

Run Time Notes

?

Speed Settings

?

[edit]

Rogue

Free Available

Extremely Different. The original mid-eighties game which named the rogue-like genre. Yes, it's on Steam! For 2.99! Rogue-lites have metaprogression, this game does not. Traditional Rogue-likes are also turn based among many other hotly debated features. Included to test the scale and out of curiosity. Turns out Vampire Survivors is totally a Rogue-lite but Rogue is nothing like a Vampire survivors-like. Well worth checking out if you want to experience videogame history.

Dungeon Crawler Top Down or Isometric Traditional Roguelike
4.8 Combined Ranking Score
62/72 Ranking Position
1017/1600 Total Points
8.5 Final Review
96% Steam
8.0 Scale
8.0 Vibes
340 Steam Reviews
356/400 Review Points
1.0 Similarity Score
55% Diagnosis:
Extremely Different
661/1200 Comparison Points
44% Genre -0.9/8 genre
44% Simple Controls -0.8/7 move
25% Survival Modes -2/4 modes
38% Power Progression -1/4 level
43% Buildcrafting Depth -0.7/5 build
71% Stage Features 3/7 stage
69% Content Breadth 3.5/9 stuff
73% Aesthetics 2.7/6 style
71% Gameplay Vibe Check 4.1/10 vibe vibe

Rogue Ranking Notes

- +

Scaling and Review Notes

Personal Hours Played: 4.0

Every game ranked was played, but also scaled based on research, talking to developers & your feedback. The priority with the scale's initial design was to compare similarity on relatively objective features - so it doesn't claim to include reviews of the depth and clarity you'd get at a games journalism site, nor the intensive time played you might get from player reviews on steam. We try to incorporate and link all of that along with a 'review scale' that checks for bugs. See the heatmap and breakdown! Time played noted so you can take any notes with a big grain of salt! I can't get to high level gameplay in 850+ games so I heavily research every game. Over 80 game creators let me interview or survey them! I Hope to go back and refine. Please argue or submit your own scores and reviews to be incorporated with credit into the notes and score numbers.

Added or last checked on 10/20/2023

There are many different versions of Rogue, but this one is on Steam! This is a pretty interesting one to compare since obviously it's the namesake for now two hotly debated genres with hopping sales! Rogue-Likes and Rogue-Lites both share some similarities with Rogue, and now we can see how it lines up with Vampire Survivors.

Run time highly estimated. Many people play on and off for decades without managing to beat it. As an old game, it can be very unforgiving. It's also turn based, so can highly vary with the player. Plus there is the randomization element, which is much broader in this game than many on the list. Anecdotally it takes "several hours" if you actually manage to get down and then back up.

It's not likely the developers thought of "run time" the way we do these days after 40 years of iterating on this game.

We'll be rating based on the steam release. I think some versions did have music, but this one does not. Loses a bit on our review scale for lack of modern controls / UI, but that's just how that scale works. 10/10 on vibes. I haven't put in nearly enough time to be an expert on this game so please let me know if you have corrections or adjustments!

This is another one included to kind of demonstrate how games fall on the scale. And because the debate about if game is a rogue-like is also never ending.

You could make a scale like this with Rogue as the example game but the people who talk about this non stop are exhausting. That's why I do my best to endorse multiple terms through this document. The evolution and use of language is interesting, but it's kind of nuts to sit around and pretend it hasn't evolved when it's already moved past you. I didn't like survivors-like at first either.

Rogue Similarity Scale Heatmap

- +

Measured in 60 categories via likert-scale style options -1 to 1 in tenths, how does this game compare to Vampire Survivors. This allows 1200 total "points". It's easier to have a point of comparison and we just picked Vampire Survivors since it's the most popular and commonly referenced game in the subgenre. For detailed methodology read the explainer. For in depth examples at score value, see the scoring guide and for term definitions see the key.

1.0 Similarity Score
55% Diagnosis:
661/1200 Comparison Points
Rogue-lite 0.5/1
Auto-Fire / Auto-Battle -1/1
Real Time -1/1
Top Down or Isometric 1/1
Direct Control of Single Avatar 1/1
Arcade Style 0.1/1
Bullet Heaven A (Many Player Bullets) -1/1
Bullet Heaven B (Few Enemy Bullets) -0.5/1
One Handed Play (w Controller) 0.2/1
Move Only -1/1
No Dash 1/1
No Trigger -1/1
No Special Move -1/1
No Aiming 1/1
No On-Aim / On-Fire Movement Penalty 0/1
Timed / Boss Ended Survival -1/1
Endless Mode -1/1
Organic / Unannounced Waves 0/1
High Enemy Count (Horde) 0/1
Level Up on XP Gain Event 1/1
Streamlined Level Choices (Simple UI) 0/1
Currency Based Meta Unlocks -1/1
Goal Based Meta Unlocks -1/1
Build Crafting 0/1
0.3/1
Weapon Combination / "Evolution" 0/1
Interesting Item / Weapon / Ability Synergy 0/1
Broken / Invincible Builds Possible -1/1
Explorable Map 1/1
BIG Maps 1/1
XP on Ground 0/1
Health on Ground 0/1
Temp Powerups / Items on Ground 1/1
Treasure Chests and/or Loot Events 0/1
Vendor / Merchant on Run 0/1
Enemy Variety 1/1
Bosses / Elites 0.5/1
Many Interesting Characters 0/1
Many Challenges 0/1
Multiple Stages 1/1
Difficulty Modifiers 0/1
Bestiary / Lore 0/1
Achievements 0/1
Secrets 1/1
Retro / Pixel Art 1/1
Damage Numbers 0/1
Lofi Charm 1/1
Bumpin Music -1/1
Fun Writing 0.9/1
Subtle Humor 0.8/1
Panic & Zen Duo Vibe 0.2/1
Over the Top -1/1
"One More Run" / Short Runs 0.7/1
Difficulty Ramp 0/1
Fun Ramp 0/1
Low Price 1/1
Technical Check 0.9/1
Controls Check 0.5/1
Fun Check 1/1
Feels like VS -1/1

Rogue Review Scale Heatmap

- +

The review scale is judged from -1 to 1 in 10 categories, with 200 possible "points" earned. Steam review positive percentage is worth another 100 points, and a "ten point" pure vibe review number adds extra subjectivity. Converted into points, that's 400 points total. The points aren't used directly in the ranking, though, which averages the three number scores for the final review score listed in the game line above.

8.5 Final Review
96% Positive Steam Reviews
340 Steam Reviews
8.0 Pure Vibes
8.0 Review Scale
356/400 Review Points
Not Buggy 1/1
Not Janky 1/1
Good UI 0/1
Controller and Deck 0/1
Lots of Content 1/1
Good Theme 1/1
Good Graphics and Sound 1/1
Fun Feel 1/1
Unique Twists 1/1
Vibe Check 1/1

Rogue Tag Cloud

- +

More sortable taxonomies and categories associated with the game (genre tags are available in the main game table line!) We've just started adding tags to enable more sorting options, this section will get more filled out as we go!

Release Tags

Windows PCFree Available

Sorting Categories

Extremely Different

Genre and Control Style Tags

Dungeon CrawlerTop Down or IsometricTraditional Roguelike

Aesthetic Tags

AsciiLofiSerious

Setting / Story Tags

AbstractDungeonsFantasy

Control Styles

Keyboard 1 HandedKeyboard Only

Game Mode Tags

Unknown240m

Features and Extras

Dev/Publisher

EpyxInc.Pixel Games UK

Game Features

- +

Listing various features we've got info on.

Multiplayer

  • Local: No
  • Online: No
  • Player Count: 1
  • Leaderboards: ?

Steam Features

  • Steam Cloud: No
  • Steam Achievements: No
  • Steam Leaderboards: No
  • Steam Workshop: No
  • Steam Trading Cards: No

Extras, Etc.

  • NSFW: No
  • Demo Available: No
  • DLC Available: No
  • Soundtrack Available: No

Marketing Blurb

- +

Some description of the game and its features from the creators.

"Experience the commercial port of the game that spawned a thousand 'Rogue-likes'. Venture into the Dungeons of Doom in search of the legendary Amulet of Yendor, and hopefully escape with your life! Randomly generated dungeons await you, full of nasty monsters, insidious traps, and glittering loot."

"In the early 1980s, a computer game emerged that changed the world of fantasy gaming forever. Randomly generated rooms meant that each journey into the infamous Dungeons of Doom was unique. "

Run Times & Speedups

- +

Average Run Time: 240m

Run Time Notes

Run time highly estimated. Many people play on and off for decades without managing to beat it. As an old game, it can be very unforgiving.

It's also turn based, so time varies highly with the player. Plus there is the randomization element, which is much broader in this game than many on the list. Anecdotally it takes "several hours" if you actually manage to get down and then back up.

Speed Settings

?