The basement and the monsters are all part of the world Isaac has created for himself. All of the abuse items and references are possible examples of the lifestyle that leads to the breaking of a child’s mind and their retreat into the “box”. Everything is terrifying, but by using items Isaac has encountered throughout his life of abuse as well as powerful religious items, he can overcome his tribulations and be the hero. The fact that there are monsters is consistent with Aether, where the boy meets a scary monster, but they still become friends. This is a statement that even a perfect escapist reality doesn’t necessarily mean perfect imagery, rather one full of creativity and abstractness patched together from what one’s mind has had access to in their warped life.
In the real world, Isaac reads the Bible, confirming to him that he is inherently sinful. In his own world of creativity, he can destroy Satan, causing him to his own world. He then gets into the toy chest, effectively comprising the game’s “real” physical ending. Killing Angel Isaac is representative of Isaac destroying what is left of his view on true reality. The boss starts as plain Isaac, but becomes an angel, then ascends to heaven as you do more damage because Isaac further enters a deeper stage of denial. Bringing the polaroid to Angel Isaac is a reinforced symbol of the real world, which pulls Isaac out of his fake world realizing that, in the real world, he is physically and metaphorically dying in both the the physical toy chest and the metaphorical “box” (respectively).
Angel Isaac thus becomes reality, the ??? Blue Baby (dead Isaac), and the real final boss. Isaac gets the chance to overcome reality one final time so he can remain in his box and relive his world over and over again as you, the player, will start another run. Each time you “win”, you make it to the toy chest, meaning you’ve defied reality yet again and made it back to the “box.” The first several endings are considered “wins” because you make it to the chest, which contains more items that add to Isaac’s escapist reality, allowing him to return to a world with even more options that make him strong. My individual boss interpretations may be way off, but I think the core concept of the main game remains strong.
The Binding of Isaac? Yes, Isaac is Binding his own mind to shield it away from further damage by descending into the basement. The basement is his own world, just like The Basement Collection is a compilation of McMillen’s own creative world. With this perspective on the game, I no longer have speculation about Isaac’s father, or aborted siblings, or whether he is the product of a failed abortion, or whether his Mom abuses him, or whether his Mom actually wants to kill him. The real point is that his perception of reality is becoming distorted and we are playing through it as he retreats. The damage that brought him there has already been done and there doesn’t necessarily need to be a “correct” interpretation of these items representing it.
A beautiful arc of one’s abused and manipulated childhood is signified by the items in Binding of Isaac – next the actual creation, and decision to enter, the box as told by the actual Binding of Isaac game and endings. Aether is about one’s life in the box and how wonderful and creative it is, but is accompanied by complete disconnect from the real world. Time Fcuk depicts how one can remain in the box into adulthood, but there is the possibility of escape only if different perspectives on life are taken.
tl;dr: Kids with shitty lives make up fake, creative worlds that they can get forever trapped in.
Edmund McMillen, please feel free to smack me down, I’ll still love your games.
