So I finished the game on NG+ mode and went into NG++, however I really dislike the entire NG++ mode. The game clearly wasn't designed with this mode in mind and it feels more like a masochistic mode than a genuinely balanced and enjoyable one. Every single enemy in the game is replaced with their miniboss equivalent and I'm finding the game practically unplayable, since everything kills me in 2-3 hits and most rooms are just a flood of wall-piercing projectiles.

Is there any way to revert the game mode back to NG+ without wiping my saves? I was really loving the game up until this point and want to carry on getting those bits of equipment I'm missing and upgrades, but I don't really have the free time to crank through hours of grinding to get back to where I am right now with a fresh save.

I don't think so unless there's a way to hack saves. Maybe if you wait a few patches, but I don't know.

Ok, I'm on NG++, and a single Grace rune actually makes a huge difference. Try it, and it should at least be playable. Maybe more if you have to.

So today I finished NG++ and ended up in NG+3. Same tier 3 monsters, just with more HP and doing more damage. NG++ was somewhat manageable but NG+3 is completely bonkers.

Maybe It's time I stopped playing this game. Just wish I had stayed in NG++ till I found the blueprints for the 2 swords and 1 chestplate I was missing.

Just finished "normal" mode with level around 130 and NG+ is hard. So can't imagine playing NG++ or +++ now. But it is a great game anyway :)

I started using grace runes in NG+3. They make a huge difference really. Ended up clearing the whole map on a single character and heading into NG+4.

When I first read this I was at the start of NG+. I thought you are insane to play above NG+2 :) Now I also managed to dry the Fountain at NG+3 (however not with single char) and I have to say two things:
1. The step of difficulty when entering NG+ is much larger than from NG+ to NG+2, and this is also larger then entering NG+3.
2. The bosses are much easier than the rest of dungeon. Basically if I was able to get to the gate, chances were high I'll kill the boss - even with not full health.

And yes, grace runes are VERY powerful :)

I just cleared the NG+5 completely with one character. The barbarian becomes a lot more useful on later levels since they're able to clear bullet hell, and the Hokage becomes much less useful and is replaced with the Assassin in terms of DPS due to the constant crits (assuming you've unlocked everything). It seems that some classes don't scale well with the upgrades versus NG++ and onward, which is kind of unfortunate because it invalidates some of the interesting builds.

Nice. Do you do it without grace runes? I try not to use them...

I tend to use assassins/knights to speed through rooms (avoiding battle whenever possible) and find gateways/bosses/green chests. I use breath first search to find rooms of interest while minimizing risk.

Then, I use the architect to recycle the gateways.

I'm at NG+6 atm.

Takes me about a handful of generations to finish the level, except when I encounter a couple of difficult green chest.

Would love to do it in 1 gen.

EDIT: Well, I use breathfirst as long as backtracking is not too costly.

BTW, I reflected on your possible setup and it's clever.

I bet you use a whole bunch of mobility enhancement runes combined with the barbarian's high HP and ability to shout missiles away to speed rooms more efficiently aren't you?