Special Game Modes Guide (Turbo, Rainbow, Blessed & More)

Beyond the main run, Enter the Gungeon offers several optional special modes, all managed by NPCs in Bresche. Each section below covers how a mode plays, how to unlock it, and how to turn it on. For more detail on the NPCs themselves, see the All NPCs & Merchants Guide.

Turbo Mode

How It Works

The whole game speeds up: player movement and dodge roll around ×1.4, enemy movement ×1.5, enemy bullets ×1.3. Reload times and Feuerrate stay the same, so the pace gets much more intense — great for thrill-seekers or shortening run length.

Unlock & Access

• NPC: Turbo-Hund – Tonic the Sledge-Dog
• Unlock: his cell appears after the Drachone has been defeated; once rescued he settles in Bresche
• Access: talk to him to toggle the mode on and off for free

Notes

• Defeating the Drachone in Turbo Mode unlocks the Krisenstein
• Turbo Mode does not speed up the pasts
• In co-op, Turbo Mode only affects Player 1 — Player 2 gets the effect only if Player 1 is dead
• Your movement and roll speed up more than enemy bullets but less than enemy movement, so outrunning projectiles gets easier while outrunning chasing enemies gets harder

Rainbow Mode

How It Works

Each floor starts with a Rainbow Chest from which you may take exactly one item. Almost every other chest and item drop is confiscated by Regenbogenhändler – Bowler, and shops stop selling items — your entire run rides on one lucky pull per floor, which makes high-quality pulls feel fantastic.

Unlock & Access

• NPC: Regenbogenhändler – Bowler
• Unlock: rescue him from a cell after the Drachone has been defeated
• Access: talk to him to toggle the mode on and off for free

Notes

• Meistergeschosss and quest-related items still appear normally; the Patrone, die die Vergangenheit abschießen kann and Angefressener Schlüssel cannot be taken either
• Müll is never confiscated (including Goldschrott, Lügen, and Müll), so the Roboter, who grows stronger from Müll, is especially suited to this mode
• The most useful tell: Regenbogenhändler – Bowler sits on every non-rainbow chest. A Brown Chest he is not sitting on is a naturally spawned Rainbow Chest and is safe to open — and a natural one lets you take all eight items
• Do not spend a Schlüssel on a locked chest he is sitting on: the key is consumed and the chest is empty. Save keys for the Oubliette hatch and locked doors
• The Rainbow Chest at the start of each floor is guaranteed at least one S Qualität and one A Qualität, and is unaffected by Magnificence (What Is Magnificence?)
• Most shrines stop working, but the Glass Shrine still hands out Gläserner Guonsteins and the Y.V. shrine still grants its buff; mirror rooms are worthless
• Opening a Glitch Chest is a bad deal here: you still get sent to the glitch floor, but Regenbogenhändler – Bowler takes all eight rewards from the fight

Challenge Mode

How It Works

Every combat room gains 1–3 random challenge modifiers (more on later floors) — enemies exploding on death, darkened rooms, restricted firing zones, and so on. Bosses in the Hollow and Schmiede get unique extra modifiers.

Unlock & Access

• NPC: Herausforderungswürfel – Daisuke
• Unlock: use the Schreine - Dice 3 times, or rescue him from a cell after defeating the Drachone
• Access: talk to him and pay 6 Hegemonialer Credits for the next run; after 30 attempts the cost drops to 1

Notes

• Reaching the Schwarzpulver-Mine unlocks Zufallspatronen
• Defeating the Drachone unlocks Chaospatronen and Double Challenge Mode (more modifiers per room; enabled by talking to Herausforderungswürfel – Daisuke again)
• After 30 attempts, Chaospatronen unlock automatically if not already unlocked

Blessed Mode

How It Works

During a blessed run you carry a single ever-changing weapon — it transforms into another random gun after dealing 200 damage, killing 5 enemies, running out of ammo, or 20 seconds in combat — and no other guns can be added to your inventory. Active and passive items are unaffected.

Unlock & Access

• NPC: Segenshexe
• Unlock: rescue her from a cell after the Drachone has been defeated
• Access: pay 6 Hegemonialer Credits to bless your next run

Notes

• During a blessed run, bosses drop no Hegemonialer Credits, shops sell no guns, and the shortcut elevators are blocked off; Munchers and Evil Munchers cannot be fed guns either (Muncher)
• Picking up a new gun does not give you a second gun — it just triggers another reroll. Achievements and unlocks can still be earned during a blessed run
• Gunslinger cannot be unlocked on a blessed run — as Paradox you will not be pulled down to Bullet Hell by the Lich
• Completing a blessed run unlocks Gunther and the "Gun Game" achievement

Boss Rush

How It Works

Each floor contains only an entrance, boss rooms, and an exit — you fight the bosses back to back up to the Drachone. Bosses have no DPS cap here, so strong combos can melt them.

Unlock & Access

• Entrance: the elevator room in Bresche (Bastler)
• Unlock: complete the Schmiede shortcut elevator
• Access: costs 3 Hegemonialer Credits; the first time is free

Notes

• Damageless boss kills still award a Meistergeschoss (at most one per floor), but bosses drop no Hegemonialer Credits
• Completing Boss Rush unlocks the Klammerschlüssel

Cursed Mode

Cursed Mode is not a built-in toggle but a high-risk playstyle: deliberately stack Curse, and Jammed enemies appear more and more often — difficulty and rewards rise together. See What Is Curse? Effects and How to Lower It for where Curse comes from, what it does, and how to reduce it.