Kujlevka

Country in existential crisis. Somewhere on it's periphery, ageing disabled man with PTSD... in existential crisis. In his living room: crashed spaceship with miraculous technology capable of granting wishes. At least if you translate the interface well... Will it bring hope to the vast, abandoned land? Or at least give extra udders to the old neighbour's goat? Kujlevka is absurd comedy. Very bitter and introspective though, on personal level as well as societal. You can laugh at crazy situations, feel for protagonist's complicated life and ponder the great insight into post-totalitarian society that has no clue about what to do with itself. In Czechia we were (and still are) in similar situation, though luckily not so severe, and Kujlevka's view feels very spot on. It doesn't write essay about it, it shows it through characters, their thoughts and interactions. It's actually very Gogol-like type of comedy. Sad and disquieting amidst chuckles and laughs. Bonus exquisite double cameo: Bush and Yeltsin on a drinking spree. P. S. If you want to discover other less known gems, you're welcome to visit my curator page: [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45655021-Nods-for-Unde…

A bit rough around the edges, suffers from some translation problems,there is also some mismatch between the english dub and the english subtitles, and the story at some points can be a bit hard to grasp, so i would only recommend grabbing the game for the experience and if you like the genre when it's on sale. Not a bad game but more like middle of the road of a recommendation.

Good idea, boring execution.

What an awesome hidden gem of a game. Fantastic voice acting, writing, decent staging, not too much to do except think and enjoy the choices while the story unfolds. ---edit--- I put more time into the game and it feels like it, as a whole, it assembled a lot of great ideas and rushed them and then made them a bitter pill to swallow. The choices become less realistic and more like it doesn't matter what you choose. There are some different unlocks in the dialog, sure, and cool achievements, but it just slowly unhinges as a game that feels rushed overall the more you play.

Kujlevka is a narrative experience that thrives on atmosphere, ambiguity, and the quietly surreal, presenting a story that unfolds more like a dream than a traditional adventure. Developed by Callback and published by Crytivo, the game situates you in a remote Russian village in the early 1990s, a time defined by uncertainty and post-Soviet disillusionment. You play as Valery Potikhonchenkov, a wounded veteran whose solitary existence is upended when a UFO crashes directly into his home. From this unlikely premise, the game builds a meditative journey through personal trauma, societal collapse, and the ineffable strangeness of first contact. Rather than leaning into science fiction spectacle, Kujlevka uses the alien encounter as a prism through which to explore human fears, desires, and contradictions. The moment the UFO lands, the village becomes an improvised visitation center, and Valery, by virtue of circumstance, becomes its gatekeeper. Much of the gameplay unfolds at a simple wooden desk, where villagers approach you with their hopes, grievances, and delusions. You decide who gets to enter the spacecraft, supposedly to commune with the extraterrestrial visitors. These scenes…

This is a surprisngly polished and rich game that deceptively looks simple. It is humorous and surreal, I'm not sure I understood the ending, but it's quite alright, there's multiple of them depending on your choices. The alien communication mechanic wasn't immediately obvious. Spent maybe half the game not calibrating my responses. I loved the pop-culture and political references. I also loved how the game isn't sci-fi focused, it's more of a philosophical take on facing the unknown. The game is really worth it. 8/10