MineGeon: Renegades has a fun mining twist, sharp pixel art, and satisfying shooting, but its gadgets need more power to make every run feel special
I have said this previously, and here it is again: if a roguelite even remotely looks and plays like Enter the Gungeon, it is a must-play for me. MineGeon: Renegades clearly understands that appeal. Heck, even the soldier looks almost exactly like the soldier from Enter the Gungeon. It did not take long for me to feel at home, and I like this one too.
After a heist goes wrong, the Renegades crash near the mysterious planet Paimo and descend into its mines looking for resources and a way out. The story is mostly there to give the adventure some context, with small conversations and mysteries appearing as you reach new areas. The real attraction is the loop waiting beneath the surface.
Each run sends you through connected levels filled with slimes, monsters, ore deposits, and the occasional objective or merchant. Combat is familiar twin-stick shooting. You move, dodge incoming attacks, and fire in every direction while experience gems spill across the floor. Between fights, you pull out the pickaxe and break apart mineral deposits. That simple change of pace gives MineGeon its own identity.
The minerals are more than temporary score. You can load them into extraction pods during a run, sending a limited amount safely back to the spaceship. Anything extracted can then fund permanent progression. You can improve your Renegade, upgrade the pickaxe so it can break tougher deposits, enhance the ship, and unlock new shops and facilities that open even more upgrades. It creates a satisfying connection between what happens in the mine and everything waiting at the hub.
The ship gradually becoming more useful is one of the better reasons to keep descending. Even a failed run can push the larger progression forward if I remembered to extract materials along the way. Choosing whether to spend time mining, secure what I had, or continue toward a tougher path added welcome tension without turning the game into a stressful extraction shooter.
At the start of a run, you choose between a pistol, shotgun, and automatic rifle. More weapons appear depending on the route you take, but their quality is inconsistent. One gun reminded me of the Witch Pistol from Enter the Gungeon, firing bullets that bounced around rooms. After adding gadgets that increased the number of bounces, it became devastating. That was the one run where the build properly clicked and I felt absurdly powerful.
Unfortunately, most other weapons lack that impact. They do the job, but they rarely have the punch or screen-clearing potential that makes finding a new roguelite weapon exciting. Swapping is also handled strangely. You can carry two guns, but accepting a third immediately deletes the equipped one. The game should simply ask which weapon I want to replace. Losing the wrong gun because I picked something up is an unnecessary frustration.
The larger issue is the gadget system. Leveling up presents upgrades that adjust fire rate, damage, movement speed, healing, and other statistics. Some trade faster shooting for weaker bullets, while others increase damage but slow the weapon down. One gadget heals you after visiting a shop, but shops are uncommon enough that the benefit feels too situational. These choices can improve the numbers, yet too few meaningfully change how a run plays.
A great roguelite needs to let me become overpowered. That climb from barely surviving to melting entire rooms is the dopamine hit that keeps me starting one more run. MineGeon rarely delivered it. The bouncing-bullet setup showed that its weapons and gadgets can produce a memorable synergy, but most builds feel like slightly stronger versions of the character I started with. The progression is there, though the transformation is missing.
This also makes solo runs feel more repetitive than they should. MineGeon supports online co-op for up to three players, and its roles, route choices, shared gadgets, and mineral gathering seem designed to create much more chaos with a full crew. I played before release and could not test multiplayer, so I cannot comment on its connection quality or balance. I can only imagine that dividing the work, combining abilities, and scrambling for valuable ore would be a lot of fun with friends.
The pixel art looks great throughout. Characters are expressive, environments have plenty of detail, and attacks remain easy to follow when a room becomes busy. The sci-fi mine setting also gives each descent a nice atmosphere, while the switch from frantic combat to quietly breaking ore creates a rhythm that works especially well in shorter handheld sessions.
MineGeon: Renegades runs great on the ROG Xbox Ally X. Performance stayed smooth during combat, the controls fit the handheld naturally, and the colorful pixel art looks crisp on its display. Its compact rooms and run-based structure make it an easy game to pick up for a few minutes, although that familiar temptation to attempt one more descent can quickly turn those minutes into an hour.
I like MineGeon: Renegades. The shooting feels good, mining gives the familiar formula a worthwhile twist, and extracting resources into a hub full of permanent upgrades provides a strong reason to keep playing. I just wish its weapons hit harder and its gadgets transformed builds instead of mostly nudging statistics. The foundation is entertaining already, and a more ambitious set of power-ups could make every trip into Paimo far more memorable. Thanks for reading!
