When you think of roguelikes, chances are Isaac springs to mind. Made way way way back before it was a trend, it was a wonky lil game that was neat for the time. After Rebirth came out though, the chains were off. It was making waves. Isaac is iconic for a reason, and that's because it's just damn good at being a roguelike.

The formula is simple, its a bullet hell and you get items and go through floors until you fight a boss. After the boss, you go down another floor. Repeat until you beat the run. The variance comes with the items you get, and that's where the double edged sword of Isaac comes into play.

Items are split into 3 categories to me. Good, useless, and actively detrimental. Out of the 700 or so items, maybe 200 are good. The rest are either useless, wildly niche, or just terrible. This means you could get a good run full of fun op items and you make yourself a very silly build, or you just get crap and have a boring time if you can even make it to the end. Usually though, ideally at least, you'd get some sort of synergy going that gives you an edge in the run. Its very rng heavy, but technically you don't even need items. Really depends on if you want to beat the game with 0 changes or not.

The style is also unmistakably Edward Mcmullen. Intentionally gross, but in a fun anarchic way. What other game can you have babies crying in poop be as charming as this game? You can't really. The items have fun little designs, and the way they change how your character looks is always fun. Its a tiny thing, but tiny things add up. Of course, the music is also fantastic. I have a few hundred hours though so i can get if you don't appreciate the same music 500+ hours in.

Honestly, this is just kinda the gold standard for a roguelike. Tight gameplay, an emphasis on fun builds and synergies between items, plenty of variety, and an unmistakable style. If you haven't played it already, I can't imagine you'd dislike it unless you don't like bullet hells I guess. Give it a shot though, you won't be disappointed.