[5] AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that the "slick production adds luster to the singles 'Quit Playin' Games (With My Heart)' and 'As Long as You Love Me', making them as irresistible as teen pop can be.

"[7] Larry Flick from Billboard noted that the song "cruises at a sweet jeep/funk pace, leaving plenty of room for a romantic lead vocal and layers of smooth harmonies.

"[8] Can't Stop the Pop commented, "This is very much the archetypal Backstreet Boys mid-tempo, which laid the groundwork for many of their subsequent hits.

[...] It expertly weaves together a distinctive guitar melody with shimmering '90s pop production (and a pseudo-R&B beat) to create a song that glistens with a halcyon sunniness from start to finish.

"[9] Greg Kot from Chicago Tribune said that on 'Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)' and 'As Long As You Love Me', "the boys embodied teen-dream vulnerability.

[12] People Magazine named it a "peppy" ballad, noting that "despite a tinge of melancholy in the group's harmonies, one can't help smiling.

"[13] Bob Waliszewski of Plugged In said that on the song, "the singer longs to return to days before insensitivity and manipulation threatened to destroy the friendship.

A year and a half after it was recorded, Max Martin was flown to London in August 1996 to re-record the second verse with Nick Carter at Battery Studios.

[17] Initially, MTV was hesitant to air the video due to the boys taking their shirts off in the rain, but reluctantly embraced it after TRL viewership caught on with audiences.

[17] The music video premiered in October 1996 in Germany and in the week of June 15–22, 1997 in the U.S.[18] Polish magazine Porcys ranked "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)" number 96 in their list of "100 Singles 1990-1999", naming it a "clever" ballad.