Theories of the Binding of Isaac

Edmund McMillen created a game in which he tells the story of Isaac. This story can be learned from short videos, environments and descriptions of objects. Before the release of the DLC Repentance, it was impossible to describe with certainty what was happening, but now the final ending has put everything in its place. And although there was some understatement in the game, the story was finally completed. 

History

Isaac and his mom lived happily together in a house on a hill. Mom watched Christian programs, and Isaac played and drew alongside on Chromatic Orb 5E. One day, my mother heard a voice from above, which ordered her to take away from Isaac everything that he had, for he is a sinner. Then the voice demanded that Isaac repent, and his mother locked him in the room. For the third time, the voice spoke to the mother. He demanded that his mother donate her son’s life to him, to which his mother agreed without hesitation. Seeing that his life was in danger, Isaac discovered a trapdoor under the carpet that led him to the basement.

From this point on, the game begins, and over time, the player uncovers numerous endings. In the first ending, the mother practically gets to Isaac, but God intervenes and kills her with the Bible. Isaac rejoiced, but his mother reappears on the threshold of his room, and he has to move further and further in the basement. He breaks his mother’s heart, and most of the endings after that involve a huge chest, from which Isaac pulls out various items.

In the final ending, he climbs into the chest himself. Next, we see Isaac reading the Bible, and sees himself in the form of a demon. Then we see many photographs of Isaac’s family. Isaac with mom and dad, mom with a certain girl, dad leaves, mom with a knife, Isaac sees a demon in himself. Next, we see an announcement of the loss, and a mother that is looking in the distance. Perhaps at this very time, Isaac is in the chest, breathing heavily. Nearby you can see the paw of his best friend – Guppy.

Isaac slowly transforms into a demon. After some time, the mother opens the chest and finds a small skeleton inside. Isaac climbs out of the chest from the other side, but a shadow follows him. In the next ending, we again see Isaac lying in the chest, which is slowly fading away. Memories flash before his eyes: the sounds of a quarrel, a crying mother, hopelessness. 

My interpretation

Before the release of Repentance, I built the storyline from the existing endings, as well as in-game items, locations and monsters with bosses. So. Of all the familiars in the game, only two have names: Brother Bobby and Sister Maggie. Accordingly, Isaac had a brother and sister. Perhaps there was still Girdy’s sister (Stardew Valley Rancher or Tiller), but there was a miscarriage. And later Maggie died.

This severely affected the mother, who began taking medications in large quantities, which affected her sanity. The father could not stand it and left home. Mother moved with Isaac and Bobby to another house, where they continued to live together. I made the assumption that the “twin” boss personifies Isaac and Bobby. Bobby is big and aggressive, and Isaac is small, and only feels calm in his brother’s company. After his father left, Isaac constantly blamed himself for the troubles that befell his family. In one of the in-game memories, we see how the character “Lost” (all characters in the game are Isaac) is the very voice that orders the Mother to kill her son.

However, at the moment when the mother rushed at Isaac with a knife, Isaac was frightened and said that Bobby is Isaac (There is an artifact in the game – a finger. It inflicts damage if directed at someone). Bobby hides in a chest where he suffocates, after which his mother finds his corpse. Isaac escapes, after which he returns to the old and abandoned house where his family lived before, and where demons continue to haunt him. 

What really happened

The Repentance add-on has put everything in its place. No sister Maggie and brother Bobby ever existed (Isaac’s mother is called Maggie), Isaac was the only child in the family. My father developed several negative habits, such as drinking and gambling addiction, and as a result, he spent the entire family budget on Sleep 5e . This led to numerous quarrels in the family, for which Isaac blamed himself. Isaac’s mother became addicted to drugs, and plunged into religion. My father could not stand such a life, and left home.

This finished off the woman, and she turned her full attention to Isaac. She tried to rid her son of all the signs of her father, in which she saw only a vice. She made him wear women’s clothes to make him look like her. She also shaved off Isaac’s hair, stripped him of his clothes, and locked him in the room, which, in her opinion, cleaned him (she did not take his drawings and toys, because they can be seen in many endings). Isaac began to see a monster in his mother, and began to imagine how he was fighting her.

Mother saw Isaac’s drawings of her as a monster, and began to lock him in the closet. Isaac several times climbed into the chest that was in the pantry, and once took with him the cat, Guppy, who suffocated there. Having finally made sure that he is a monster, Isaac climbs into the chest for the last time, where he, at the age of five, suffocates, and his mother finds his bones. After his death, Isaac finds himself in purgatory, where he finds his father. Together, they travel through Isaac’s memories, where they fight his demons over and over again, purifying Isaac in the process. But the trauma of Isaac is very deep, in the “storeroom” of his “home” there are even more mutilated versions of him, and the battle continues. One day, Isaac will find ultimate peace. 

Conclusion

Heavy plot. Treat each other with kindness. A small age is not a reason to scoff at a person. And the game(Stardew Valley Fighter or Scout) is really outstanding!