Hi. Thanks for the feedback!
Admittedly the risk vs. reward factor hasn't been quite developed to the degree we'd like yet, but hopefully we can push beyond that after the holidays are over and we have a little more free time. As health upgrades and powerups haven't been fully implemented yet, the sidestepping rooms become more of a barrier with no clear intent, but down the line these rooms will be filled with goodies that players can obtain if they wish to explore beyond the main game.