As I swing my "friend" – aka, a giant lollipop – into the gut of yet another enemy, I consider for a moment how simultaneously clever and chaotic Into The Unwell truly is. The sweet treat has many associations, commonly seen as a reward doled out by doctors to their most well-behaved patients. Similarly, as I gleefully gather teeth – a pearly white temporary currency – after clearing the level, I'm implicitly reminded of tooth-pulling and other barbaric practices suffered by psychiatric patients over the last hundred years.
This is no accident, because everything here is a symbol for something else. Straddling two stylized worlds of madness and reality, Into The Unwell opts for ugly truths over euphemism. It refuses to take itself too seriously, satirizing age-old stigma to turn perceived weakness into immense strength. It's also a damn fun co-op roguelike, and it took just 45 minutes for me to put it straight on my most wanted list.
