WORTH ANOTHER GO? THE EDITORIAL VERDICT
Enter the Gungeon
A dense bullet-dodging roguelike where an eccentric arsenal supports serious spatial decisions. Its changing arsenal works alongside a stable defensive skill: reading projectile patterns and using space well.
Game facts
- Developer
- Dodge Roll
- Publisher
- Devolver Digital
- Released
- 5 April 2016
- Platforms
- Windows · Linux (Steam edition)
- Model
- Paid game
- PEGI
- 7 — Nintendo Switch edition; not a separate PC classification
- Players
- Single-player · Multi-player
- Length
- Medium
- Difficulty
- 4 / 5 · Demanding
- Steam Deck
- Verified
PEGI source ↗ · Steam Deck status source ↗
Edition: Base game
The score, explained
The interest and responsiveness of the core decisions and actions.
How progression, exploration and goals fit together.
The coherence of the visual, musical and narrative presentation.
How clearly the game explains its rules and offers useful ways to engage.
The depth of optional goals, alternative approaches and reasons to return.
Read the room before firing
Enter the Gungeon combines a changing arsenal with rooms full of projectile patterns. Dodge rolling, taking cover and using available space are central to surviving long enough for a weapon to matter. The game pairs hand-designed rooms with a procedurally arranged labyrinth, creating variation around recognisable combat situations. Our core-play assessment favours that balance between learned skills and adaptation. It is not simply a matter of collecting the most unusual gun and holding the trigger. Players need to attend to movement and danger together. The recommendation therefore assumes an interest in concentrated action: anyone who finds busy patterns tiring may struggle to enjoy the very feature that makes the combat appealing to its intended audience.
A changing route through familiar ideas
Different heroes, weapons, secrets and room combinations give each descent opportunities to develop differently. The wider objective provides a reason to keep travelling downward, while individual discoveries can alter the plan for the current run. We rate the structure highly because the changing equipment works with a stable set of defensive skills. Learning how to survive remains useful even when the next weapon is unfamiliar. The trade-off is that the game will not always support a favourite approach on demand. A player who wants a carefully fixed build from the beginning may dislike that uncertainty. Gungeon is better suited to asking what can be done with the current tools than to repeating one perfect loadout every time.
A comic arsenal inside a serious challenge
The game presents a world built around guns, ammunition and deliberately absurd weapon ideas. That humour gives the dungeon a distinct identity without removing the concentration required by its encounters. Small character designs and imaginative equipment make the premise inviting, but the projectile-heavy action remains the important practical consideration. We score the presentation highly for its consistency with the game's systems, not because novelty alone guarantees clarity on every screen. The official co-operative option also provides a shared way to approach the dungeon. Its exact requirements should be checked for the relevant edition and setup. Flipping tables, dodge rolling through attacks and discovering unusual weapons create plenty of lively moments within the repeated dungeon structure.
Choose it when adaptation is rewarding
Enter the Gungeon is a strong fit for players who want an unfamiliar weapon or room arrangement to become a tactical question. Unlocks, discoveries and improving defensive skill create several clear reasons to return, supporting a high replay assessment. The same repetition can be a poor match for someone who mainly wants a story to continue without restarting the action loop. Hades offers an alternative with repeated runs but a stronger emphasis on conversations and persistent character relationships between attempts. Choose Gungeon when the immediate pleasure of dodging, positioning and making an odd arsenal work is the main draw. Its promise is not that each run will cooperate with your preferred plan, but that adapting the plan can be the fun. Its changing arsenal works alongside a stable defensive skill: reading projectile patterns and using space well.
The verdict
A dense bullet-dodging roguelike where an eccentric arsenal supports serious spatial decisions. Its changing arsenal works alongside a stable defensive skill: reading projectile patterns and using space well.
Reasons to play
- Dodge rolling and cover create meaningful defensive choices
- A varied arsenal encourages adaptation
- Room and route combinations support repeated exploration
Reasons to think twice
- Busy projectile patterns require sustained concentration
- Random equipment can disrupt a preferred approach
See the game
Assist & accessibility
Explore the available settings and control options on the official game page before choosing your setup.
Parents’ guide
Players: Single-player · Multi-player. No in-game purchase marker in the checked Steam listing. Separate downloadable content may be sold.
Age classification: 7. Nintendo Switch edition; not a separate PC classification
A useful starting tip
Prioritise a safe route through the room before committing to damage; a useful weapon cannot compensate for losing all movement space.
A different direction
Compare this with Hades: A rewarding return loop where changing weapons and boons tests growing combat skill while the household keeps developing around each attempt.
Official sources
Reviewed: November 2026
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