Where to start with this one?

The positive: There are actually a lot of things that I like about this game.
- It looks gorgeous. The visual design is mostly brilliant, except for a few places where pits and traps blend into the environment so well that you end up falling into them by accident, or because you simply didn't realize that they were there, or indeed what they were.
- Enemy design and variety. Again, the game has a very consistent visual theme that it pulls off brilliantly.
- Hidden content. This game rewards exploration and puzzle solving to a huge degree, with secret floors and random encounters that can make or break your run.
- Story and humor. Yes, this game has a story. Yes, it's nonsensical and hilarious. Yes, the game has a sense of humor and it generally works really well. Some of the interactions I had with a couple of the NPC's were quite memorable indeed. The use of a central hub that gradually expands in place of a simple start-menu works wonders and lends the game a lot of personality.

Things Betwixt: There are some things that neither drag the game down nor improve it.
- Gun variety and design. There are loads of guns to be found and unlocked. So many creatively designed, unique pick-ups, as well as countless references to established tropes, other franchises and, of course, a staggering amount of gun-puns. However, this ultimately doesn't do as much for the game as you might think, because the vast majority of the weapons simply aren't very good. Perhaps this is a consequence of the built-in tier system. Either way, most guns you'll find end up being rather underwhelming, and your chances of actually getting anywhere on any given run with a load of low-tier weapons and no "boss killers" are slim. What's the point of such a huge selection if you're either just going to remove 3/4ths of the guns by playing in Rainbow Mode, or be disappointed and reset if you don't get anything decent on your first floor?

The Negative: The meat and potatoes of this review, as the game has several glaring issues.
- Difficulty. This game is hard. It takes a lot of inspiration from other games known for their difficulty, particularly bullet hell's and the Souls-franchise. Sadly, this isn't really the good kind of difficulty, where you feel as though you're being given a fair challenge that can be overcome if you just try hard enough. Instead, it's the sort of constructed, artificial difficulty, that instead feels like the game is actively working against you, trying to stop you from playing it. Some examples of this:
1) Dodging. The game prominently features a dodge-mechanic. This is used to dodge through enemy bullets and to do basic platforming. However, it's not consistent in either regard. You cannot consistently dodge enemy fire, nor can you consistently do the platforming puzzles that the game puts in front of you.
2) Level design. As mentioned above, there are room where you are expected to notice traps and pits that would be difficult to spot even if you were looking for them, but are rendered practically impossible to notice when you also have to focus on actively fighting enemies. The geometry of many of the rooms you will encounter also works against you, as your character has a tendency to get stuck on corners and the like.
- Overdesigned and weirdly tuned boss encounters. A game like this needs to have good bosses. There is no way around it. Sadly, there are few encounters that I would characterize as fun. Most, again, rely on (unnecessary) artificial difficulty. For example, 2 out of 3 possible 1st floor encounters are single bosses that need to be learned and beaten on their own. The third encounter not only features 2 bosses at once, which are difficult enough to deal with on their own, but also relies on constantly spawning additional enemies to clutter the arena even further. The reliance on additional enemies or unnecessary additional mechanics, like random shots being fired at the player from outside of the arena, drains what enjoyment I feel there is otherwise to be had from a lot of the fights. And some of the bosses are simply so much more difficult than their counterparts on the same floor that you genuinely have to wonder how they ended up there. For example, the Ammoconda fight really has no place being on the 2nd floor. There is also an element of RNG to the fights that you can't control, as bosses like the Cannonbalrog can decide to spawn and fire its attacks on top of the player.
- Grinding. You are required to do a lot of grinding if you want to unlock everything. Some of these grinds are excruciating as it is, but have been made infinitely worse by additions made to the game. Nothing is more frustrating than being tasked with killing 20 enemies that only spawn once or twice when the stars align.

Conclusion: Enter the Gungeon is, in my opinion a very troubled game that masquerades as a very good game. All the elements needed for it to be great are there, but they don't click. The potential for hours of fun is present, but squandered, as the game seems intent on deliberately frustrating the player rather than entertaining them. Time and time again you are left bitter and nnoyed, knowing what could have been, rather than enjoying what is actually there. Boss encounters can come across as jaw-droppingly unfair, and you will often find yourself enraged by the fact that a single bad room can break an otherwise perfect run. Because of the fact that in all my hours spent 100%'ing this game, I hardly ever felt like I was enjoying the experience, otherwise being a massive roguelike fan, I simply cannot recommend this title. It simply never clicked with me.