It goes without saying that, where the vast library of indies is concerned, Enter The Gungeon is easily a contender for one of the best out there on the Steam store in terms of what it sets out to accomplish as a deep and challenging roguelite with a unique flavor of 'bullet hell' to stand out from the crowd that has very much saturated the market and demand for these types of games. Though any game that is simply 'good' at what it does would be wholly underselling the sheer creativity and attention to detail put into crafting this game's world, it's many colourful characters and, above all else, the insane amount of guns and gun-like items on offer for the player to have fun with! Seeing as each run will start you off with just your starting pistol as well as any other small perks that each of the four playable 'gungeoneers' (plus several other secret characters that can be unlocked through specific means) have, which helps to encourage those to experiment with which ones align with their own playstyle. However, to get right into what Enter The Gungeon is all about, you are tasked with exploring five increasingly challenging chambers (with a special 'sixth chamber' for those who want to truly push themselves and go beyond the 'vanilla' experience) as you go through about roughly twenty or so rooms in each chamber, with every room either being filled with random enemies that are hellbent on bringing you down, a store vendor that lets you make use of this game's currency in the form of 'shells' or a treasure chest that varies in size and elegance depending on it's quality that requires a key to unlock alongside the typical 'boss room' where the chamber's big bad lays in wait for you to take on. Bearing in mind, this isn't even touching upon the many other little special rooms that one may encounter along the way that aren't a part of the standard chamber layout, whether this be one of a dozen or so shrines that the player can pray for various benefits (usually with a 'caveat' in the form of a loss of a heart/gun or some challenge to overcome first) or different minigames that the player can choose to participate in via payment of shells for potential awards, sometimes being absolute trash if they play terribly or being a genuinely super powerful item or gun if they perfect it! One thing to address in particular that some may have a serious gripe with is how Enter The Gungeon starts off especially harsh to new players, not just in the sense that it's a challenging roguelite where you need to learn the many enemies and how to adapt to each of their patterns (especially when combined with other foes with complex attack patterns!) but also adapting to runs where you have great items but stuck with the starting pistol or a superb gun but having no luck with any decent items. This problem is especially apparent when you first begin the game as most of what is unlocked at the start is not that great compared to 85-90% of the items you'll be unlocking later when you have enough 'Hegemony Credits' earned by killing bosses to spend on items that can be bought outside at the Breach to have them potentially spawn in the chambers below. Noting that the Breach itself will be quite sparse at first until you start picking up Cell Keys from bosses (or, on the rare chance, a powerful enemy) to unlock specific cells in the chambers during certain runs where you can free these NPCs for use either on the Breach to buy more items and unlock certain challenge modes or those who remain below in the chambers who offer their own items, albeit often with a twist of the sorts! Seeing as there is a lot on offer as far as traditional roguelites go, Enter The Gungeon will prove to be a fun game for those who can stick at it, even if it is one that seems overwhelming to start off with. Since I will admit to having tried this fun indie back in 2021 on the PlayStation 4, having to give a good 12-13 shots JUST to reach the Fifth chamber and another several more before eventually getting my first 'run' completed. (Sadly I didn't get too much further in, no 'Sixth Chamber' unlocked nor did I try out most of the challenge modes) Meanwhile it only took me three runs to get to the Fifth chamber and cleared my first full run the very next attempt when making my return to the Gungeon here on PC! This is to say that, once you've learnt how to play Enter The Gungeon, it comes back to you quite easily and, with some patience and willingness to learn, anyone can become decent at this roguelite once they know what to expect as this bullet hell roguelite doesn't give you any power-ups or little perks to help you start off better at the very beginning of each run. Rather, by playing each run and unlocking more unique and potent weapons/items, you not only become better by learning to dodge bullets better and become more adapt to the many firearms and abilities that items offer out there but improve by the selection of said guns and items becoming better the more you unlock as you progress further down the Gungeon. Though it won't be for everyone, there is something quite satisfying about completing a run of the Gungeon, whether it be by just barely getting by and pulling through to the end in a struggle to defeat the big boss at the end of the Fifth chamber or a purely glorious playthrough where you get all manners of great items that synergize together (another fun mechanic where certain weapons/items become stronger when in your inventory together) and you nail each boss perfectly as a result, ending up with having a solid shot at the true 'end-game' via some of the secret bosses in their own areas inbetween the chambers or the dreaded Sixth Chamber itself if you have that already unlocked! Honestly, given the sheer coverage of this game, it wouldn't surprise me if my review does not change many minds of those who have either played it for themselves or have already heard of this impressive indie by Dodge Roll. (Indeed, naming their studio after a most critical gameplay mechanic in their big hit game is quite something, albeit the success is well-deserved on their part!) But for what it's worth, Enter The Gungeon still holds up surprisingly well here in 2025 and, despite it being nearly six whole years since the final update, I can confidently say that this is one indie that any respectable Steam gamer that cherishes their indies should at least have a look at to see if they have what it takes to beat the Gungeon and, more importantly, to kill their past! TLDR Version: • A fascinating roguelite that fully makes use of various 'bullet hell' mechanics in it's challenging gameplay (+) • Lovingly crafted world where anything and everything has some relation to guns, ammo or explosive set in our real life or the fiction of many other games' universes (+) • Five chambers consisting of increasingly difficult randomly-generated rooms, with a Sixth chamber and multiple secret areas to unlock for those eager for the extra challenge (+) • Over five hundred different guns and items, each one unique and offering something new to the player for each run through the Gungeon (+) • Multiple different game modes that can be unlocked on top of special rooms in the Gungeon that offer optional events or minigames for players to take on and potentially be rewarded well for skilled effort (+) • The 'bullet hell' roguelite can be overwhelming for those not used to either genre and may prove too much for some casual gamers (-) • Starting off Enter The Gungeon can be quite slow and possibly frustrating, given the poor selection of mostly subpar or gimmicky weapons/items at the start where nothing else is unlocked (-) • No perks or stats to improve for a better start to each run in future attempts, which will likely put off those wanting an extra aid as they progress (-)
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