diff --git a/tests/integration/test_recording_sync.das b/tests/integration/test_recording_sync.das
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1b2d74d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/integration/test_recording_sync.das
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+options gen2
+options indenting = 4
+options no_unused_block_arguments = false
+options no_unused_function_arguments = false
+
+require dastest/testing_boost public
+require imgui/imgui_playwright public
+require daslib/json public
+require daslib/json_boost public
+
+//! Integration coverage for the two recording-sync primitives added in dasImgui PR #186:
+//! `wait_for_hover` and `record_check`. Uses the `color_button_hover` feature — the CBH_RED
+//! swatch carries the per-widget IsItemHovered telemetry (the `hover` field) that wait_for_hover
+//! polls. One app spawn covers both (record_check's `app` arg is unused).
+
+let FEATURE = "modules/dasImgui/examples/features/color_button_hover.das"
+let TARGET = "CBH_WIN/CBH_RED"
+
+[test]
+def test_recording_sync(t : T?) {
+    with_imgui_app(FEATURE) $(d) {
+        var snap = wait_for_widget(d, TARGET, 15.0f)
+        t |> success(snap != null, "{TARGET} renders")
+        if (snap == null) return
+
+        // ---- wait_for_hover ----
+        // Move onto the swatch — it must report hovered (the move -> wait_for_hover -> click gate).
+        move_to(d, widget_click_point(snap, TARGET))
+        t |> success(wait_for_hover(d, TARGET) != null, "wait_for_hover registers hover after move_to")
+
+        // Move off — hover must clear (expected=false on a PRESENT widget).
+        move_to(d, (4.0f, 4.0f))
+        t |> success(wait_for_hover(d, TARGET, false) != null, "wait_for_hover sees hover clear after moving away")
+
+        // Regression for the #186-A false-pass: a missing / misspelled ident must NOT pass as
+        // "not hovered". The old predicate coalesced a null hover to false and returned on the FIRST
+        // poll; the widget_exists guard makes it time out instead. A tiny timeout still separates the
+        // two (old=immediate non-null, fixed=times out) without spending the wall-clock to wait it out.
+        t |> success(wait_for_hover(d, "CBH_WIN/__no_such_widget__", false, 0.3f) == null,
+                     "missing widget does not false-pass wait_for_hover(expected=false)")
+
+        // ---- record_check ----
+        // Returns its `ok` argument, and accumulates (does NOT panic) on false — the
+        // accumulate-don't-panic discipline; the teardown-panic surfacing is exercised transitively
+        // by every record_* driver in the suite. Reaching the line after the false call proves it
+        // didn't panic mid-body.
+        t |> success(record_check(d, "ok branch returns true", true), "record_check returns true when ok")
+        let failed = record_check(d, "intentional miss (accumulated, not panicked)", false)
+        t |> success(!failed, "record_check returns false and accumulates instead of panicking")
+    }
+}
diff --git a/widgets/imgui_playwright.das b/widgets/imgui_playwright.das
index 74a1182..95ce66c 100644
--- a/widgets/imgui_playwright.das
+++ b/widgets/imgui_playwright.das
@@ -358,8 +358,12 @@ def public wait_for_hover(app : ImguiApp; widget_ident : string; expected : bool
     //! race a real continuous-hover mouse never hits (synthetic != real). Bounded by ``timeout_sec``;
     //! returns the matching snapshot or null on timeout. ``null`` is a real failure — gate it with
     //! ``record_check`` (recording) or ``success`` (test); never proceed to the click silently.
+    //! The ``widget_exists`` guard is load-bearing for ``expected=false``: an absent / misspelled
+    //! ident yields a null ``hover`` that ``?? false`` would coalesce to ``false``, so a missing
+    //! widget would false-pass as "not hovered" and mask a sync failure — same guard as
+    //! ``widget_rendered``.
     return wait_until_sec(app, timeout_sec) $(var snap) {
-        return (find_widget(snap, widget_ident)?["hover"] ?? false) == expected
+        return widget_exists(snap, widget_ident) && (find_widget(snap, widget_ident)?["hover"] ?? false) == expected
     }
 }