The Legend of Bum-bo Is a Turn-Based Binding of Isaac Prequel

Edmund McMillen, the developer behind The Binding of Isaac and Super Meat Boy, has announced his latest project, The Legend of Bum-bo.

Bum-bo is a “puzzle-based deck building roguelike prequel to The Binding of Isaac.” The game is set about a month before the events of Isaac and concerns titular hero Bum-bo’s journey to recover his only coin, which has been stolen and carried into the sewers by some kind of monster. McMillen says the title’s deck building gameplay will be similar to that of Slay the Spire and Dicey Dungeons, but “very different.”

The game features a cardboard cutout aesthetic, similar in nature to Paper Mario. The trailer features plenty of references to Isaac, including the return of several enemy types and friendly NPCs, as well as Isaac’s stompy mother.

Several Isaac collaborators are returning for Bum-bo. James Interactive, who made some of the disturbing advertisements for Isaac, is a co-creator on the project. Isaac composer Ridiculon will do the soundtrack, and audio artist Jay Fernandes will provide the squishing, squelching sound effects. Isaac narrator Matthias Bossi will voice Bum-bo himself, as he does in the above trailer.

The Legend of Bum-bo comes to PC and Mac via Steam Nov. 12, with iOS and Switch versions available at a later date.