Reference

Editions Compared

Rebirth, Afterbirth, Afterbirth+, and Repentance aren't four separate games — they're four cumulative layers on one release. Here's exactly what each one adds, and which one you want.

Each edition contains the last

All of Isaac's content rides a single Steam app, and every DLC is a superset of the one before it. Buy a later edition and you own every earlier item too — the collection never forks into separate games, it just keeps growing.

Rebirth
Nov 2014
341 items
base
Afterbirth
Oct 2015
436 items
+95 new
Afterbirth+
Jan 2017
547 items
+111 new
Repentance
Mar 2021
719 items
+169 new

Repentance+ (a free update, Nov 2024) isn't a fifth edition — it's Repentance with reworked online co-op and some balance tweaks, so it sits as a thin tier on top rather than a new catalog. Everything on this database reflects the full modern game through Repentance.

What each edition adds

Rebirth

Base game · Nov 2014341 collectibles total

The base game — the foundation everything else builds on.

  • 11 playable characters and the core run from Basement to the Chest and Dark Room
  • 341 collectibles, the full item-pool system, and local co-op with baby helpers
  • The complete Rebirth soundtrack, seeds, and daily-run groundwork

Afterbirth

DLC · Oct 2015436 collectibles total

The first expansion — new endgame, new modes, two new characters.

  • Greed Mode — a wave-based alternate run ending at Ultra Greed
  • The Blue Womb floor and its boss, Hush
  • Lilith and Keeper join the roster, plus Hard mode and reworked alt floors

Afterbirth+

DLC · Jan 2017547 collectibles total

Opened the game up to modding and years of free content.

  • Full Lua mod support with Steam Workshop — thousands of community mods
  • Apollyon, The Void floor, and its boss Delirium
  • Greedier Mode and five free Booster Pack content updates

Repentance

DLC · Mar 2021719 collectibles total

The definitive edition — a whole second game bolted on top.

  • The Tainted roster: a darker alternate version of every character
  • A full alternate path — Downpour through Mother, then Home and The Beast
  • Bethany and Jacob & Esau, 25+ new bosses, and a game-wide rebalance

Feature by edition

FeatureRebirthAfterbirthAfterbirth+Repentance
Core game, all base chapters & local co-op
Greed Mode
Blue Womb & Hush
Greedier Mode
Steam Workshop mods (Lua)
The Void & Delirium
Alternate path (Downpour → The Beast)
Tainted characters
Game-wide rebalance & reworked HUD

Which edition should I get?

Get Repentance. It bundles every earlier edition, roughly doubles the base game with a second full path, and is the version balanced for how Isaac plays today. There's no reason to stop at an earlier tier.

Just know that a later edition isn't only more content — it's also a retuned version of the old content. Repentance rebalanced the item pools, reworked plenty of older items outright, buffed and nerfed characters, and replaced the special-item system with the current item-quality mechanic. So the same collectible can play differently than it did back in Rebirth or Afterbirth — you're getting the current, tuned game, not a bigger pile of the old one.

The DLCs stack on the same app, so you can also add them one at a time and each simply unlocks more content on the save you already have. The only genuinely separate branch is Redemption, a large fan mod — its own universe, and out of scope for this database.