Performance Overview
The Binding of Isaac is one of the most-played games on the Steam Deck. The roguelike nature and ability to play in short bursts make it perfect for the handheld.
Do you know what else is good? It works right out of the box with next to no tweaking. Even with Steam Workshop mods, The Binding of Isaac is able to keep things moving along at a smooth 60 frames per second, complete with crisp visuals.
On the Steam Deck, you can even get away with turning down the TDP to eight to save battery life and shut the fan up.
While we’re on the topic of battery life, you can play Binding of Isaac on Steam Deck for around five hours before needing to charge. Five hours! Given how many games normally tap out at the two-hour mark, that’s an extra three hours of gaming time in comparison. It’s a game you can actually play in handheld mode without needing to check the battery every 10 minutes. Not bad, eh?
I do feel the need for one whacking-big caveat: Your game will crash eventually, and the performance will nosedive. That isn’t anything to do with the Steam Deck, though. The Binding of Isaac features hundreds of different items the player can utilize, and if you end up with a run that makes use of several screen-filling items, it’s going to affect frames, there’s no way around it.
As I say, this isn’t a Steam Deck problem. Even on high-end PCs it can be too much. There are simply so many items that certain combinations are sure to cause issues.
That said, this isn’t a constant occurrence. For the most part, things will run near flawlessly. And, to be honest, when the game does crash because there’s too much going on, you can’t help but laugh because you knew it was coming.
Recommend Settings
All the settings come down to personal preference. There are no settings to alter the framerate, resolution, or things like ambient occlusion. Just settings to tweak the sound, menus, and a handful of accessibility options.
You do, however, absolutely want to tweak the Steam Deck settings in the quick access menu (the “…” button). That’s because there’s no need to use the full 15 watts to play The Binding of Isaac. That’s just overkill. Drop the TDP down to eight and you’ll still have a fully functioning game, albeit one that chugs less battery juice.
In docked mode, you could try setting the game to run at 1080p, but it’s honestly not worth it. I played it in 720p with FSR turned on and that looks as good as it does on my PC.
| Binding of Isaac (In-game Settings) | |
| SFX |
5/10 |
| Music | 5/10 |
| Map Opacity | 3/10 |
| Fullscreen | On |
| Filter | Off |
| Gamma | 100 |
| Pop-ups | On |
| Active Cam | On |
| Extra Hud | Mini |
| Hud Offset | 6/10 |
| Found Hud | On |
| Charge Bars | On |
| Bullet Visability | High |
| Steam Deck Settings (Quick Access Menu) | |
| TDP: 8 (60 frames) | Estimated Battery Life: 5 Hours |
| Docked Mode Resolution: 1280×720 | FSR: On (Docked Mode 720p) |
| GPU Usage: 30% | Temperature: 49 degrees |
| Extra Info | |
| Fills the Entire Steam Deck Screen | Yes |
| Valve Grading | Verified |
| Performance Rating: 3/5 | |
Conclusion
I try not think about how many hours I’ve spent playing The Binding of Isaac across PS4, PC, and Steam Deck. It remains one of the single greatest games ever created and is perfect for 15-minute blasts and all-day sessions.
On Steam Deck, it runs beautifully, and being able to play it on the go is always a delight. Couple that with easy-to-access mod support through Steam Workshop and The Binding of Isaac on Steam Deck is the definitive way to play on a handheld.
Disclosure: Review code provided by PR. | All screenshots captured on Steam Deck.| To learn more about our review policy click here. | Alternatively, click here to find out why you can trust me.
