BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships (2021)

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships cover

Developer: Deep Green Games
Publisher: Abyssal Studios
Platforms: Windows, macOS
Genres: Casual, Indie, Strategy
Rating: 4.4 of 5, 34 player ratings
Typical playtime: about 45 minutes
Where to get it: Steam

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Playing feels like studying chess under a stern Soviet tutor who demands precision through historical puzzles, with a dry, serious tone and no room for error.

educationalchallenginganalyticalunforgivingminimalistretroprecisetensedeadpan humor

What players say

Players say this entry in the BOT.vinnik series offers clever puzzles drawn from late USSR championship matches, but the sessions are very short at around 20 puzzles each. Some find the format too similar to bookstore puzzle books, and there is no free play mode to experiment after solving. Players are split on whether releasing this content as six separate games makes sense.

Screenshots

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 1

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 2

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 3

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 4

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 5

BOT.vinnik Chess: Late USSR Championships screenshot 6

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More by Deep Green Games

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.