The best of the tracks on the album feature production from The Neptunes [...] Since This Ain't a Game has so little to offer, that line is what listeners will remember most about Ray J.

"[1] In a positive review, Craig Seymour from Entertainment Weekly wrote: "Brandy’s little brother Ray-J matures nicely on this sophomore set, with production by R&B hotshots Rodney Jerkins and The Neptunes.

The singing/acting biz kid, who evokes Bobby Brown and Off the Wall-era Jacko, sounds surprisingly credible on the hard-knock-life odes.

[He] might sound like he researched the role as "playa" following Jay-Z around and watching from behind a newspaper with two eye holes cut in it but the track smokes, and that’s that.

[5] This Ain't a Game produced the top 40 hit single "Wait a Minute", featuring rapper Lil' Kim.