Subtle Moments and Treats

For the first time.. Yes, for the first time in my entire conscious life as a gamer, there is a decent game on Flash! The reason for choosing this particular development tool remains a mystery, as the downsides are obvious:

· inability to directly handle gamepads

· lack of support for HD graphics modes

· unreasonably heavy load on hardware, and as a consequence,

· dissatisfaction from players with weak machines.

Moreover, based on the way the game is distributed (Steam), there are also:

· issues with achievement synchronization

· absence of Steam overlay.

But whatever it is, a good unexpected indie flash game from masters of their craft is better than a much-anticipated project from a well-known company that turned out to be a blatant piece of crap (let's not point fingers and go down that path).

Today I want to talk about the small nuances in the game that will undoubtedly torment players just starting [The Binding of Isaac](/games?search=The Binding of Isaac).

First of all, we have a rogue-like game, which means, yes, forget about save points during the game process. Only statistics and unlockable items and characters will be stored between lives. Every time we'll have to start from the beginning of the game, and, if we're lucky, make it to the end. Ideally, to unlock all content, the game must be completed 11 times. The first time you will go through a shortened campaign, and the first kill of Mommy will not count towards statistics. Don't be scared, it's not a bug; after the second time you will understand everything.

Let's move on to the hidden nuances we encounter at the very beginning of the game. **Rocks**.. Take a closer look at them, and you'll notice that some of them are, wait for it, a different color!

If you try to break them, you'll most likely receive a couple of gray hearts that temporarily increase your maximum health. Although you might also get bombs, keys, and even chests! [o_O]

Speaking of gray hearts, their quantity is not limited, even if they exceed the maximum size of 12 hearts! So go ahead and grab them all. Incidentally, that’s why the Book of Revelations + Battery = almost immortality in skilled hands! I hope you read @LaCTuK's posts about items, so I will freely operate with item names.

In the womb, red rocks with contents are also found, but they probably don't stand out visually from the others. At least I haven't found their visual differences yet.

Next up is the **Secret Room**! Yes, there is always one special secret room on each level, which is not visible on the map and has no door! It can be easily found once the entire floor is cleared. The room must touch three or four other rooms. Agree, there aren’t many possible places, so just approach and plant a bomb against the wall next to the presumed entrance.

The arsenal of the room ranges from a handful of coins to artifacts and slot machines.

What? Fires? Ah, yes, later on.. Looking for the room can also be aided by the Treasure Map, which allows you to see the room's location on the map, X-ray glasses that let you enter the room without blowing up the entrance, and the Treasure Seeker's Helmet, which signals the presence of a room with sound.

**Fires** and **Poops** are very common. They need to be destroyed. There is a chance to drop a coin from them, and rarely, a heart. By the way, the poops created by the artifact

of the fifth character

"the poop" are sometimes phantom, meaning they can't be broken, you can walk through them, and they disappear upon leaving the room. It looks like a bug..

**Treasure Room**. Well, there’s really no need to linger on it, just a simple room with an artifact, locked behind a key everywhere except the first level. This room, as well as the shop and test room, does not exist in the womb.

The **Test Room** is closed off by a grate that opens automatically after clearing the room in which, actually, the entrance is, provided that you have, as @LaCTuK said: "*the number of FULL hearts is greater than or equal to the number of containers for red hearts. That is, if you have 3 containers, 2 red hearts and 1 gray, the room will still open. The game considers it a full life :)*" A chest may be present there or an artifact may lay. If you pick up the item, the exit closes until you defeat three waves of enemies (in the final levels, there will be three bosses!).

The **Game Room**. Here is where the fun begins! You have to pay one coin to enter, but inside you can play a shell game, a slot machine, or donate blood.

Oh.. Sorry, I already broke that machine.. [^\_ ]' Here’s what a working one looks like:

With the Lucky Foot, losing here is almost impossible. Even without it, you won't leave empty-handed, even if you lose all your money; you will at least take away some bombs and keys. In the machine, the standard winnings are money, keys, bombs, hearts, pills, and flies (both friendly and hostile); in the shell game - money, keys, bombs, hearts, and flies (only hostile). However, in both "lotteries," you can hit the jackpot after which the stall closes.

In the machine - a dollar that gives 99 cents instantly.

With the charlatan - The Poop Hat (or just poop on your head), preventing normal flies from bothering you =D

And one more thing: don’t try to keep track of his actions and the mixing of skull-shells. The animation for mixing is always the same!

In the blood donation machine, you can pour in excess gained hearts, but be careful, in the last levels, it takes not half a heart but a whole one! I don’t need to explain that you will die if you donate all the blood! D:

By the way, you might get lucky here as well! The machine can spit out a bag of blood, and consuming it will restore all health + give an additional heart + slightly increase speed. Yes, it's easy for vampires here.

All three devices can be smashed to bits in anger, grabbing at least something if things aren’t going well..

The **Beggar** asks for money. If you have a couple of dozens, don’t be stingy. In the process, he will give you all sorts of trinkets, like bombs and keys, and in the end, he will most likely reward you with food (which is +1 to maximum health), but he can also give an artifact.

If you have no money, no heart, or if you haven’t yet defeated Greed, you can also blow up the beggar and take some junk, like pills.

The entrance to the **Devil's Lair** sometimes opens after killing the boss in the boss room. Essentially, it’s another shop with better items, for which you’ll have to pay with life. The price is indicated in hearts of maximum health! Sometimes in gray hearts, but quite rarely.

The arsenal of items is not particularly large; simple game artifacts appear (usually for 1 heart each), but there are also special items that can only be purchased here, so experiment. And most importantly, evaluate soberly whether you really need this item and whether you will have too low health after that.

The most frequent guest at the Devil's stall is the Black Cat. You need to be especially careful with it. When purchased, it grants you 9 lives! The cat costs 2 hearts, but after the purchase, you are left with exactly one, no matter how many you had before! On top of that, after dying and resurrecting using the cat, your health is again set to one heart, even if you collected food between lives. Far from always, having 9 lives of one heart each is better than, say, one life, even with 3-4 hearts.. The second subtle thing with the cat is that if you buy the cat and you have 2 hearts or less, the cat will be acquired, you will die, but instantly resurrect with 1 heart and 8 lives. This case seems to be the only reasonable reason to buy the cat in a sane state of mind.

The well-known **Meat Boy** is not only a reference to the previous game, as is the Bandage, but also the only "stackable" artifact in the game! To collect a full Meat Boy, 4 pieces of meat are needed. In order:

One piece simply flies around you like a fly, deflecting projectiles and hitting enemies.

Two pieces come together to form a head that flies next to you and shoots blood at enemies.

The third piece gives a body. The boy now walks around you on the map, hitting enemies (not bad, by the way) and is really annoying as he moves your bombs closer to you!

The fourth piece will increase the boy and add strength and speed.

You should avoid **spikes**, as they are painful, but such constructions

can be overcome without wings by carefully crossing diagonally from any corner.

The **Room with the Bug** is similar in spirit to the minus first levels in the same Meat Boy; you can only enter it accidentally by using a teleport (I don’t know if teleporting cards can send you there, it has never happened to me). The room contains the Bug itself, a few items, and a downward exit. Yes, you cannot return to the level anymore..

P.S.: Thank you @LaCTuK for clarifying the most subtle points and everyone else for being here =D

When writing this post, only my screenshots and personal experience were used..