Underplayed Gems

Chernov Incident (2026)

Chernov Incident cover
Developer
Daulet Mukan, Liza Kuzmina
Publisher
Yerzhan Mukhanov
Platforms
Windows, macOS
Genres
Indie
Rating
4.4 of 5, 8 player ratings
Typical playtime
about 24 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

A lonely, high-stakes race against the clock in an empty facility, where each cryptic instruction from a cold automated voice tightens the knot of dread.

tenseatmosphericurgentpuzzle-drivenlonelyclaustrophobicminimalistnarrative-focused

What players say

Players describe a tense ten-minute puzzle where they race to stop a reactor meltdown by following an automated instruction book. The atmosphere is praised as consistently stressful, helped by a large red timer and a realistically slow phone bot. Controls draw mixed feedback, with some frustrated by the need to toggle a button to look at the panel.

Screenshots

Chernov Incident screenshot 1Chernov Incident screenshot 2Chernov Incident screenshot 3Chernov Incident screenshot 4Chernov Incident screenshot 5

More games like this

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.