Part 35

Master the Pong Challenge in The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth! Learn strategies, item synergies, and how to defeat ??? with fixed damage and tear delay.

Alright, let's dive into Part 35 of our Binding of Isaac: Rebirth journey. This time, we're tackling a unique one: the Pong Challenge. It's Challenge #35, and it throws some serious curveballs your way right from the start. ## Difficulty So, the big thing here is your damage is fixed at a whopping 100, which sounds amazing, right? And it is, for the most part. But here's the catch: your tear delay is also fixed at a glacial 0.20. This means you can only fire one tear every 5 seconds. So, while each tear hits like a truck, you've got to be patient and precise. ## Strategy This challenge really tests your patience and ability to plan your shots. Since you can only fire one tear at a time, and it takes 5 seconds to reset, you need to make every shot count. * Cupid's Arrow is Key: Remember that Cupid's Arrow you start with? It fires a tear that can hit multiple enemies. While that tear is in the air, you can't fire another. So, try to line up enemies to get the most out of that initial shot. This is super important because you can't just spam tears to clear rooms. * Clear the Screen Before Moving: Before you enter a new room, make sure your current tear has already hit something or disappeared. If you enter a new room with a tear still flying, you might not be able to shoot immediately, which can be dangerous. * Focus on Speed and Health: Since your damage is already maxed out, you don't need to worry about damage upgrades. Instead, prioritize items that give you speed or health ups. More speed means you can dodge better, and more health means you can afford to take a hit if you misjudge a shot. * Fly-Generating Items are Your Best Friend: Items that spawn flies or spiders are incredibly useful here. In Repentance, the damage of these flies and spiders is calculated based on your current equipment, not the challenge's fixed damage. This gives you a consistent way to deal damage while your main tear is on its long cooldown. Just be aware that in Repentance, if you close and reopen the game, the damage of existing flies and spiders resets to twice your base stats. * Sacrifice Rooms for the Win: If you're feeling brave or need to reach the Dark Room, Sacrifice Rooms can be a shortcut. If you manage to beat The Lamb in the Dark Room, it counts as clearing the Pong Challenge. * Boss Rush Decision: You can technically reach Boss Rush in time due to your high damage. However, most bosses won't die in a single hit, and you can't increase your damage to one-shot them. This means you'll have to carefully dodge a lot of attacks while waiting for your tear cooldown. It might be safer to skip Boss Rush to avoid taking unnecessary damage. * Mastering the Bounce: Luring enemies into your bouncing tear can be a really effective strategy, especially if the tear gets stuck. Try shooting it against a wall so it bounces back and forth. This is particularly useful against stationary bosses like Larry Jr. or enemies that regenerate quickly, like Globins, since you can't fire fast enough to stop them otherwise. ### Good Items When you find items, keep an eye out for these: * Revelation (Repentance only): This is amazing because its damage scales with your own. Since your base damage is so high, Revelation tears will one-shot most bosses. * Maw Of The Void: Similar to Revelation, this item's damage scales, making it very powerful in this challenge. * Shoop da Whoop!: Another item whose damage scales with yours, allowing for quick boss kills. * Bob's Rotten Head: The poison effect from this item deals triple your current damage, which is massive with your fixed 100 damage. * Rotten Baby (except in Repentance): The blue flies it spawns provide a reliable damage source while you wait for your main tear. * Tammy's Head, Tear Detonator, Varicose Veins, Sad Bombs: These items all release giant, bouncing tears that can clear rooms and even bosses incredibly quickly. * Mutant Spider & The Inner Eye: These give you triple or quadruple shots without any downsides, massively increasing your damage output. * Libra: This is one of the few items that can actually override the challenge's fixed damage and tear delay. It offers a decent fire rate but lowers your damage, so it's a bit of a gamble, but it can change how you play. Remember to be patient, make your shots count, and prioritize survivability. You've got this!