Unboxing the Cryptic Killer
Unboxing the Cryptic Killer
Game
Game2025
Parallel Experiment
Developer Eleven Puzzles
Two detectives, one deadly experiment, a race against time. Each player only has one half of the puzzle. In this 2-player co-op puzzle game you can survive the parallel experiment only by working together. From the Steam store page
208 reactions from 2 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky) · newest Nov 1, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
87
LovedLoved
160 positive · 24 negative
95% range 81–91%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 160 | 24 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 6 | 1 | 17 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
403 of 459 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
88% recommend · 161 yes, 22 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 183 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (735 of 861 positive).
Players praise the game as a significant upgrade over previous entries, with more puzzles, story, and content. [1][2][3] Some reviewers note the game requires a cooperative partner and can be frustrating without one. [4][5][6] A few players express disappointment, citing poor mini-games and a departure from the series' formula. [7][8]
Liked
Representative posts
- [6]
Games that are co-op only need a way to bring a friend on board without having to buy a second copy. Most other games of this type that release these days already do this. Most devs know I'm not going to pay for a game twice, and I'm not going to hound my friends to buy a copy, and I'm definitely not going to go through the work of hunting down some rando I don't even know to play with. Got this in a bundle, and I'd …
- [1]
I played two previous games from the same developer: Unsolved Case and Unboxing the Cryptic Killer. This is definitely their most ambitious work so far. There are more features such as minigames, dialogue options, moving between different rooms, and the game is longer (12 hours to complete 100% achievements). I really like that they try to incorporate new features into the game instead of just reiterating their …
- [9]
Strong, characterful co-op puzzler. Another really good co-op puzzle game from Eleven Puzzles Studio, where each player has half the puzzle and must communicate with their partner to solve it together. This is the third game in a series! Start with Unsolved Case https://store.steampowered.com/app/2084050/Unsolved_Case/ which is FREE. If you enjoyed that, move on to Unboxing the Cryptic Killer …
- [2]
For those who have played the previous entries of the series, this installment expands greatly on gameplay and content. It's especially improves upon the gameplay and the puzzles. Although they removed hints from individual puzzles, they did include a walkthrough. I don't have much to add. Even if some of the puzzles and secrets are more challenging than the other games, I say this one is the most engaging game the …
- [3]
A huge upgrade over the previous game in terms of content, depth, side content, story, quality of puzzles and pretty much everything! Two things to keep in mind: First, do not miss the tokens, they are missable, make sure to find them in each level before leaving. And second, get your buddy ready, it will get very difficult towards the end and you need good communications to overcome this game and this experiment.
Summarised from 34 of the 207 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
88% of the 183 Steam reviewers we collected recommend Parallel Experiment. The complaint that keeps coming up: co-op only with no way to play solo. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Reactions
60 of 208 · most liked firstGames that are co-op only need a way to bring a friend on board without having to buy a second copy. Most other games of this type that release these days already do this. Most devs know I'm not going to pay for a game twice, and I'm not going to hound my friends to buy a copy, and I'm definitely not going to go through the work of hunting down some rando I don't even know to play with. Got this in a bundle, and I'd like to play it, but as it is it's essentially worthless to me.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Feature four - four upcoming indies that deserve a wishlist! Spiritstead @turbodoggames.bsky.social Gem Miner TD @iferalgames.bsky.social s Kabuto Park @dodoot.bsky.social Parallel Experiment @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social
neutral · AI labelView post →This is a great game! IF YOUR FRIEND WOULD ACTUALLY PLAY IT WITH YOU AND NOT SAY HE WILL AND THEN PLAY SIEGE ALL DAY! THAT'S RIGHT I'M TALKING TO YOU, MAX!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a great game! IF YOUR FRIEND WOULD ACTUALLY PLAY IT WITH YOU AND NOT SAY HE WILL AND THEN PLAY SIEGE ALL DAY! THAT'S RIGHT I'M TALKING TO YOU, MAX!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wooof, this one was bad. The previous games were fine and fun, and the beginning of this episode was promising. But the whole thing devolves quickly into a bad series of lousy mini games and non sensical plotting. All the charm and cleverness of the previous game is wasting by this sorry excuse for an ending. Truly disappointing. PS after the reply by the team : I'm not changing my review because it reflects my feelings at the time, but I cringe a little reading it, because it was…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Two detectives, one deadly experiment, a race against time. Each player only has one half of the puzzle 🧩 Parallel Experiment, our two-player cooperative puzzle game, launches on March 6, 2025. ➡️ Wishlist now on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/2012320/...
neutral · AI labelView post →I played two previous games from the same developer: Unsolved Case and Unboxing the Cryptic Killer. This is definitely their most ambitious work so far. There are more features such as minigames, dialogue options, moving between different rooms, and the game is longer (12 hours to complete 100% achievements). I really like that they try to incorporate new features into the game instead of just reiterating their formula. The story is also more developed and explored in this one than in the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's fine. More of the same from this developer, like their previous games. Its not at all difficult, there's a story told in (comic) slide shows. The artstyle is meh. There's a neat little feature about this particular game - collecting secret coins that unlock optional coop minigames.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →#justbeatit Unsolved Case The free prequel to the coop game Unboxing the Cryptic Killer and Parallel Experiment. Fun, quite easy and short asynchronous co-op puzzle experience. Could act as a demo for the other games if you’re interested. @polykillpodcast.bsky.social
positive · AI labelView post →Parallel Experiment, a co-op game in the noir Cryptic Killer series by @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social, comes out tomorrow! thinkygames.com/game...
neutral · AI labelView post →Playing a new game Parallel Experiment from one of my favorite co-op game series, with Ambie on twitch starting now. The art is like a good comic book. twitch.tv/JoeSondow twitch.tv/ambierona
positive · AI labelView post →This week's #WishlistWednesday is Parallel Experiment, a co-op point-and-click game in the Cryptic Killer series by @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social! thinkygames.com/game...
neutral · AI labelView post →Very cool game with nice puzzles; kinda short but good story (especially if you complete all the mini games and unlock the extra cutscene
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Between the two of us, we're pretty sure @bunnienova.bsky.social and Nevi have enough braincells to puzzle out Parallel Experiment! We're so excited to get back to and hopefully finish this game! www.twitch.tv/neviahofflame www.twitch.tv/bunnienova
positive · AI labelView post →This has been a fun (and sometimes a little challenging) adventure in this trilogy. Voice acting is funny, as it has been in all three games. Fun to experience with a friend
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love this GAME! Honestly, I am a picky girlfriend when it comes to games but this was great puzzle game i enjoyed with my partner.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Schedule up! The usual games, though will be (hopefully) finishing the co-op puzzle game Parallel Experiment with Pastry this week!
neutral · AI labelView post →🎮 2025 Game #61: Parallel Experiment Asymmetrical co-op puzzler in the same vein as a We Were Here game - just with a boring story, poorly written dialogue, and some very fluctuating gameplay quality. I liked the more complex puzzles, but the rest just aren't that great. 4.5/10 #IndieGames
negative · AI labelView post →#justbeatit Parallel Experiment @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social Asynchronous 2 player coop escape room game with interesting story. Inventive and tough puzzles which never stumps you too long. This came out the day when the Switch 2 came out yet I wanted to play this more @polykillpodcast.bsky.social
positive · AI labelView post →This game requires a friend to play. By the end of it, you won't have a friend to play it with. Jokes aside, great game. Voice acting is pretty rough. Story feels a bit jumpy. Puzzles were great though. Definitely didn't need to use a few hints to get through it, but if we did, I'd say their hint system was great, and doesn't give away too much per hint request.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Really nice detectve game. Sometime the puzzle actually more simple than what we thought, lol The dev said that this game is standalone, but I think its better if you play start from the prolog, especially to get used to the puzzle type. Summary, its really good. Hope there were will be sequel again.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What a huge failing for a promising series. The previous games were all alike in that they were escape room simulator types. The developer obviously got excited to try some new skills, but it took away from the game experience fans were expecting. Would not buy this if I could go back.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Played in a three day span, took us around 6 hours! Really love these games, and it was on sale! Happily would support the devs to make another sequel!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →AMAZING GAME!! Hard and unique puzzles super good if you are a puzzle lover The story line and quality you get for this game is unmatched 10/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →only fun because you get to laugh about how bad it is and how confused you are with your close friends sadly.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is truly sad... but I can wait for a great game! @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social @piratepr.com #puzzlegame #coopgame #Minimap #GameNews #parallelexperiment minimap.net/magazine/par...
neutral · AI labelView post →I'm always happy when we go to do cool things for a press release ☺️ Parallel Experiment is a co-op mystery puzzle game, and for those requesting a review key, we have an awesome (optional) puzzle box that unlocks in-game content! youtu.be/kt8rExtxFxI?...
neutral · AI labelView post →A huge upgrade over the previous game in terms of content, depth, side content, story, quality of puzzles and pretty much everything! Two things to keep in mind: First, do not miss the tokens, they are missable, make sure to find them in each level before leaving. And second, get your buddy ready, it will get very difficult towards the end and you need good communications to overcome this game and this experiment.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If the achievement grind wasnt so abysmal i would give this a thumbs up, so if u dont care about 100% go for it. Also it would randomly glitch during minigames and not let you press the X, had to close the game like 3 times 8/10
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Still not as good as the 1st free game in the series but worlds better than the 2nd game. I had fun
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Definitely a huge upgrade from the prequels of the series. Nice new puzzles and more developed story, minigames, and graphics!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →For those who have played the previous entries of the series, this installment expands greatly on gameplay and content. It's especially improves upon the gameplay and the puzzles. Although they removed hints from individual puzzles, they did include a walkthrough. I don't have much to add. Even if some of the puzzles and secrets are more challenging than the other games, I say this one is the most engaging game the developers made of this series.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Strong, characterful co-op puzzler. Another really good co-op puzzle game from Eleven Puzzles Studio, where each player has half the puzzle and must communicate with their partner to solve it together. This is the third game in a series! Start with Unsolved Case https://store.steampowered.com/app/2084050/Unsolved_Case/ which is FREE. If you enjoyed that, move on to Unboxing the Cryptic Killer https://store.steampowered.com/app/2069040/Unboxing_the_Cryptic_Killer/ ... and when you're done…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a nice game. I liked the puzzles and the art of the game. I recommend playing the other 2 games first, "Unsolved case" and "Unboxing the cryptic killer", before playing this one. I played this game with a friend of mine and we both did notice that there is more storyline in this game compared to the previous two games. While my friend did mind it at one point, I totally didn't.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really enjoyed the game. We once had a bug but restarting helped solve it. The riddles where good and I love the teamwork, you really need to work together or you won't be able to progress, some games are co-op but one player ends up doing all the work. I like that this is not the case here. There was one minigame I didn't like at all (dart) but the others were fun. For people that love co-op and escape rooms this is perfect.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After we enjoyed the first game and its free prequel, we were left rather disappointed with this one. It's always a shame when developers don't trust their own skill, their genre or their audience. This game tries to be many things at once, instead of focusing on the core strengths of a solid puzzle game. While some of the puzzles were interesting and fun to solve in co-op mode with a partner, the bigger part of the game was: - uninspired storytelling that shifted from tropey neo-noire to…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Haha, love the idea. We had a virtual puzzle box for Parallel Experiment that unlocked a hidden room in the game. But ours was a lot easier to solve 😁
positive · AI labelView post →"Unboxing the Cryptic Killer" is the latest date night game completed by @kingothecask.bsky.social and I! Super fun game by @elevenpuzzles.bsky.social ! Can't wait to see what comes next in Parallel Experiment! #couplesgaming #datenight
positive · AI labelView post →There is not enough co op puzzles to go around but this one is close to the worst. + Hint system works very well. + Graphics are nice and clean so its not too confusing. + Co op is pretty good and I also liked how diverse the gameplay was, a big upgrade over the first game. - Some of the puzzles are really confusing, especially the late ones when there are multiple screens to cover and they both intertwine between you and the other player. - Honestly the story is such a mess, I tried paying…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great game but after going to the basement in the 2nd chapter the woah and wow voice lines are switched for the subtitles. Please fix
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The puzzles are rather intuitive, provided you're able to communicate with your partner. Be descriptive and tell them what you see. You both need each other to get through. I would only recommend getting the game if you and your partner can make it through the demo. If you can get a good flow going between you, you'll have a good time!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game was very enjoyable. It was a very different experience from the previous two games in the trilogy. There are still some normal puzzle solving parts like the previous two games. However, this game introduces many different types of puzzle games that it feels like it's a collection of many small games. If you played the previous two games, think of it as if along with the previous puzzles, there were a lot of those fun little minigames you saw while solving some of the puzzles. This…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →not better than the other two it had lots of bugs. but in overall it was a good game! 8/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really liked the first two games, and was looking forward to this one. However, this volume was plagued by a wave of useless cutscenes and by an overly complicated plot that made little to no sense. The first game was fun and lovely because it focused on puzzles that were fun to solve as a team. Here, you're introduced to a new gameplay every five minutes that doesn't really feel fun or well done. This, added with the unnecessary buffer, made playing this feel like a drag. I hope that the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love this series! I wish there were more like it! Absolutely love the inclusion of a hint system. The puzzles are mostly fun, and when there is one that doesn't logic for me I having the hints is a godsend! However.... Timed puzzles, and a certain audio design choice I don't quite understand... Timed puzzles just don't work for some of us. A timer can make it hard to concentrate for people with certain neurodivergences. I would really like accessibility options to turn off the timer.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Parallel Experiment is a very unique co-op puzzle game wrapped around a detective story. There are proper cutscenes, a map system with fast travel and a couple of mini games to do on top of the puzzles you encounter in 4 chapters. The puzzles are very varied. What makes them unique is each partner being in a different room and not being able see what they're doing. Often you have to combine clues together to find the answers. This can create some very interesting situations with well thought…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fun coop game with nice puzzles for which you actually need to work together to solve them. The story is a bit random. Some things are left unexplained after finishing the game, but there is some nice details you can notice about the polish culture, like special cups for drinking tea which i think is a nice extra.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →servers are bad. cant even play the game without disconnecting, it seems like there are no servers here in SEA.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →---{ Graphics }--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☑ Beautiful ☐ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{ Gameplay }--- ☑ Very good ☐ Good ☐ It's just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{ Audio }--- ☐ Eargasm ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{ Audience }--- ☑ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☑ Grandma ---{ PC Requirements }--- ☐ Check if you can run paint ☑ Potato ☐ Decent ☐ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer ---{…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Shout-out to my wife for recommending this to me through one of the hundreds of TikToks she sends me on a weekly basis. The puzzles are tricky yet crafty enough to keep you and a friend engaged, and it felt fitting playing this after just completing one of the We Were Here games, where we already honed our communication skills. Really fun experience, especially when it's on sale. P.S. This is the Saw movie tie-in game we should have gotten all along. IYKYK.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Well designed co-op puzzle game. I wish there were more like this and the 'We Were Here' series.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Perfectly fine co-op puzzle game. Some puzzles bit on the easier side and some a bit too obscure. Story a bit hit and miss, not all that interesting. But overall enjoyable to play with a friend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you like puzzle co-op this is a fun game. The story is a bit unclear and strange, hard to understand. However, we enjoyed our time in this game solving puzzles. for the cheap prize it is worth it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This saga completely hooked me! The aesthetic is simple yet beautiful, and the comic-book art style fits perfectly with the detective theme. I originally tried the Unsolved Case demo, and now here I am chasing 100% achievements 😄 The puzzles are really well designed and genuinely feel like a collaborative experience, which makes it even more fun to play with someone else. I especially loved how the game sends you across different parts of the city, using clues from one place to solve problems…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After the First two Games me and my Friend are really dissapointed from this one. some Riddels are just too long or take too long to even understand. Some clues are missing aswell.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →super fun puzzles I loved how they were different than the first two games and more interactive, I really liked the mini games too :D
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sunday 03/15 - 11:00 - Probably joining LuxiChara's community Among Us game 15:00 - Parallel Experiment with LucideityZero
neutral · AI labelView post →servers dont working. Cant start match with friends
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I thought I would like this after playing the first one, but it just felt so long and the puzzles weren't very mentally satisfying. The story was mediocre. Though it did have a variety of different play styles, it just felt very awkward and didn't mesh really well.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Buy Unboxing the Cryptic Killer instead if you do not own it already. Definitely the better part of the 2.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.
