Enter the Gungeon is a rogue-like video game (procedurally-generated dungeon crawl levels featuring unique gameplay and permanent death of the player) released more than four years ago. The game features four playable characters, with three additional characters that may be unlocked through completing in game objectives, each featuring their own unique weaponry and bonus items to help the player on their journey into the Gungeon: a bullet-hell dungeon where at the bottoms lies the gun that can kill the past.
The title alone must sound silly. The explanation, perhaps even more so, but let me tell you: Enter the Gungeon slaps so hard. It's unique gameplay, storyline, unlimited pop-culture references, and rewards for each Gungeon run(geon) that encourage players to come back again and again make this game endlessly replayable.
In this article, delve deep into the gameplay, why the game is so relevant, highlight its pop-culture references, why the gameplay is so much fun, why its structure makes it the perfect game for long-form gamers or those that only have an hour at a time to enjoy, and all around why it deserves as much attention today as it did upon its release.
This sounds really interesting, but I think the article would need to be cautious that it is not too subjective. Rather than looking at why it is so fun, this could translate to a discussion of what elements of the game play are most enjoyed by those playing it. Then, WHY are those aspects of game play so popular? (I'm not familiar with the game so forgive my generalisations, but is it suspense, or mystery, or action, that players enjoy?) I think this would need some form of evidence to avoid coming across as just opinions, whether it be reviews or statistics to demonstrate popularity, etc. – leersens5 years ago
Leersens,
Thanks for the advice. As this would be an article a bit close to my heart due to my (obvious) admiration for this particular game, I would be weary to make this a subjective glorying article about the game. The highlight of the article should be about what it is about the game that makes it so enjoyable and how it's in depth pop-culture connections keep it relevant to anyone playing it as well as people of any age. (No need to forgive as no offense was given. Perhaps the article would give inspiration to want to try the game out?) I would want this to be a review piece but also touch upon why after four years it's still (pardon the repeated terminology) slaps so hard. – FarPlanet5 years ago
I'm with leersens (and am glad to see leersens' comment was so well received). Evidence is super important. I've written a couple of essays on specific aspects of video games (such as avatar and gear design in Age of Conan) and used a lot of material from game discussion boards. It's definitely work to comb through discussion boards, for example, but it's also definitely worth it. I also used evidence within the game (what does the game show and not show, allow and not allow, etc.). Both types of evidence are useful. – JamesBKelley4 years ago