Okay I will admit, if you have friended me on Steam (letsmaybeLP92 if you weren't aware), you will know that I didn't just start playing The Binding of Isaac yesterday or even within the last few months. In fact, it is one of my most played games on Steam. You may ask, then why are you covering it in a Let's Maybe Play... series. Well, what better way to start off a series of reviews than to cover the indie game that I am most familiar with. This would also serve as a gauge to see if people would want to see a mix of first plays vs retrospectives. Now that this is out of the way, it's time to dive into this inaugural entry of Let's Maybe Play... This entry will be the first of several posts I will spend covering the Binding of Isaac, with this part discussing how I came across this game and my initial impressions of it.
Beginnings I suppose you all are wondering how this game of all things has become one of my favorite games. Well to explain that, I will need to start from the beginning. Growing up, one of my favorite game franchises was The Legend of Zelda. That sense of procedural generation and dungeon exploration thrills me. In January of 2013, I discovered the marvel that is PC gaming. Sure I had played games like Freddie Fish and Oregon Trail when I was younger, but it was on a family computer and less than modern systems. Now that I had a proper PC capable of gaming, I was searching for games that invoked that kind of feeling I had when playing Zelda. When I chanced upon NorthernLion playing the Binding of Isaac, I knew I found the game. I found a nice sale for the game and its DLC Wrath of the Lamb and eagerly installed it. While I knew I would enjoy the game, I would never imagine just how much time I would put into the game. Initial Impressions I knew what I wanted from the gameplay of the Binding of Isaac, but what blew me away was the amazing soundtrack by Danny Baranowsky. That epicness really put me even more so into the mood to play the game. Many people agree with me about the music aspect, but the next part is where many people may differ with me. I honestly think that the art style of the original Binding of Isaac was incredible at the time, and still am of that opinion. That sorta of design is hard to duplicate and while not necessarily the smoothest of animation, still gives a sense of being able to relate to the characters. I can admit that I found the game very challenging the first couple of times I played it. In fact, I was't even able to beat the first floor boss after a week of play. This obstacle only served to motivate me even more and allowed me to appreciate the gameplay mechanics that the developer and coder placed into the game. Coupled with all the subtle and obvious religious themes in this Zelda-inspired game, looking back I can surmise why I was so engrossed in the game. In future parts, I will dive into a more in-depth analysis of the game, including what I feel was done well and needed improvement, as well as what I have gained from it. In the comments, let me know if you like this type of blog entry and what you would like to see in future renditions of this. See you soon!
kalirion
5/15/2015 03:15:01 pm
Really, 1 week of not being able to get past floor one of BoI? That's ... pretty bad. Comments are closed.
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About MeHi, I go by letsmaybeLP92 on many sites on the Internet. I enjoy reading and testing out the newest and oldest games out there, as well as sharing my passion with others. Archives
March 2023
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