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The Berlin Apartment

The Berlin Apartment is certainly a nice tribute to the history of the titular city. With gorgeous scenery evolving through time that tells the tales of its residents, the apartment is a delight to explore. However, a more intriguing main narrative or engaging gameplay mechanics would’ve been a massive boon for the game. A gorgeous art style and heartwarming sentimentality make The Berlin Apartment an enjoyable experience, albeit one that struggles to stand against the genre’s best.
The Berlin Apartment Game Cover
84%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, emotional
Most mentioned negative aspects:grinding, stability
90% User Score Based on 172 reviews
Critic Score 69%Based on 3 reviews

Platforms

Xbox Series X|SPCPlaystation 5XboxSteam DeckWindowsPlayStation
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The Berlin Apartment Game Cover

About The Berlin Apartment

The Berlin Apartment is a single player casual simulation game with drama, mystery and historical themes. It was developed by Blue Backpack and was released on November 17, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Dilara joins her father Malik, a handyman tasked with refurbishing an old apartment in the city of Berlin, Germany. In the course of their extensive renovation work, Dilara digs deeper and deeper into the history of the apartment. Relics from past times turn out to be silent witnesses and former companions of the apartment's previous inhabitants. With each new find, Malik tells his daughter the st…

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The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
The Berlin Apartment screenshot
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Reviews

90%Audience ScoreBased on 172 reviews
story45 positive mentions
grinding6 negative mentions
  • Unique concept of exploring 20th-century German history through stories set in the same apartment across different eras.
  • Beautiful, distinctive art style and detailed environments that enhance immersion and historical atmosphere.
  • Emotional and thought-provoking storytelling with well-drawn characters and a sensitive treatment of difficult historical themes.
  • Gameplay is minimalistic, slow-paced, and often frustrating with clunky controls, limited interactivity, and tedious sequences.
  • Inconsistent quality among the stories, with some chapters feeling weaker, disjointed, or out of place, particularly the 1967 segment.
  • Several technical issues including bugs, glitches, poor voice acting in English, and lack of features like dialogue skipping or checkpoint revisiting that hinder replayability.

  • story

    142 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    32% positive mentions, 64% neutral mentions, 4% negative mentions

    The story is praised for its emotional depth, thoughtful exploration of historical eras through the lens of a single Berlin apartment, and strong character connections, creating a rich, evocative narrative experience. However, some find it slow-paced, overly linear, and occasionally disjointed, with certain segments feeling less relevant or poorly integrated, especially the concluding chapter. Overall, it is valued as a beautifully crafted, heartfelt storytelling game, though its minimal gameplay and pacing may not appeal to all players.

    • “The game isn't long, but its narrative flow and storytelling give flesh to the times, providing a glimpse of how that one apartment in Berlin survived through the bad times and good times, with its hidden secrets and tales for the present and future.”
    • “This is one of the most well-written, animated, and beautiful storylines I've had in a game in a very long time. Thank you so much, developers, for taking such a hard and emotionally difficult story and turning it into such a beautiful, funny, heartbreaking, and amazing game.”
    • “The story of Berlin in the 20th century is a complex and delicate one that really needs to be told with care to do it justice, and this game really nails it. I could feel the thoughtfulness that went into choosing every scenario and each person's story.”
    • “It's a great concept, I love the art style, I love the emotional and intellectual depth it offers, but it's simply way too boring, monotonic and feels less like a game and more like an interactive storytelling experience.”
    • “Another problem is that the plot set in the present day should actually tie all these stories together into a coherent whole, but instead it undermines their meaning.”
    • “Gameplay itself is rather weak for a walking simulator and includes several sections that are simply boring; meanwhile, the plot is designed in such a way that the player begins to doubt whether any of it actually happened, which is strange since it was supposed to be the central part of the game.”

  • emotional

    52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game delivers a heartfelt and emotionally engaging narrative experience, exploring themes of memory, family, loss, and history through well-crafted, poignant stories set in a single Berlin apartment across different eras. While its slow pace and minimalistic gameplay make it feel more like interactive storytelling than a traditional game, many players found it deeply touching, evocative, and capable of provoking genuine emotional responses, from warmth to heartbreak. The art style, music, and characters enhance this emotional depth, making it a worthwhile experience for those who appreciate reflective, narrative-driven adventures.

    • “Through this unique concept, the game delivers a reflective and emotionally engaging experience that explores memory, family, loss, hope, and the passage of time.”
    • “Brought to life with a gorgeous art style and emotionally personal stories, The Berlin Apartment aims to tug on the heartstrings.”
    • “Thank you so much, developers, for taking such a hard and emotionally difficult story and turning it into such a beautiful, funny, heartbreaking, and amazing game.”

  • gameplay

    40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    28% positive mentions, 62% neutral mentions, 10% negative mentions

    The gameplay is primarily simple and minimalist, focusing on exploration and narrative discovery with light, varied mechanics that differ across the game's distinct chapters. While some players appreciate the unique, charming, and relaxed gameplay elements that complement the story, others find it slow, tedious, and occasionally frustrating, with moments that hinder engagement. Overall, gameplay serves as a modest, mostly unobtrusive vehicle for the narrative rather than offering deep or challenging interactive experiences.

    • “The gameplay also differs from each story, providing new and interesting elements to interact with that flesh out the lives, thoughts, and challenges faced by these four characters caught between history and geopolitics.”
    • “In covering a different section of history, each segment takes on its own style and gameplay.”
    • “(One of my favourite parts of the game is how the game mechanics differ from character to character, letting you see a bit more of how they think and see the world.) It takes you through a lot of emotions too; sweet, funny, heartbreaking, tinged with unease and frustration.”
    • “Gameplay itself is rather weak for a walking simulator and includes several sections that are simply boring; meanwhile, the plot is designed in such a way that the player begins to doubt whether any of it actually happened… which is strange, since it was supposed to be the central part of the game.”
    • “Add to that slow animations and drawn-out dialogues, and you end up with gameplay that bores players instead of drawing them in.”
    • “I found the gameplay to be very poor and extremely slow.”

  • graphics

    39 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    62% positive mentions, 30% neutral mentions, 8% negative mentions

    The game features a beautiful, distinctive art style that blends colorful, comic-book aesthetics with detailed, era-authentic environments, creating a cozy yet emotionally resonant atmosphere. While some chapters showcase minor graphical bugs, overall the stunning visuals greatly enhance immersion and storytelling, making the game especially appealing to fans of calm, narrative-driven experiences.

    • “The colorful comic-book-inspired art style gives the game a distinctive appearance while preserving the emotional weight of its subject matter.”
    • “Brought to life with a gorgeous art style and emotionally personal stories, The Berlin Apartment aims to tug on the heartstrings.”
    • “Beautiful painterly art style that shifts with authentic detail in each era.”
    • “Several chapters present rather unusual graphical bugs, particularly when rendering some of the more detailed areas in the final story.”
    • “The writing and acting are a bit weak and gameplay stays minimal, but every chapter brings a distinct charm - especially the final chapter with some very imaginative visuals.”
    • “[*] game has a colorful, comic-book aesthetics with a detailed 3D environments.”

  • music

    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 37% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    The music is generally praised for fitting well with the game's time periods and emotional tone, creating a cozy and appropriate atmosphere. While some users find the soundtrack pleasant and well-tailored, a few mention mediocre sound design impacting overall audio quality. Overall, the soundtrack enhances the game's vibe without overshadowing its artistic style.

    • “Music shifts appropriately between eras and emotional situations, helping establish the mood of each story.”
    • “The art style is charming, the music fits perfectly, and the whole vibe is cozy without shying away from heavier moments.”
    • “The gameplay is relaxed and cozy, the soundtrack fits perfectly.”
    • “Besides the rather mediocre sound design and soundtrack, which also affects the voice acting in some parts, the heavy handholding and the very limited amount of freedom the game gives you, there are also some annoying bugs and several major issues that should have been fixed a long time ago.”

  • atmosphere

    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    43% positive mentions, 57% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game excels in creating distinct, immersive atmospheres for each chapter, vividly capturing different historical periods and social lifestyles. Enhanced by effective sound design, the storytelling deeply conveys the tension and emotional weight of each era. Overall, it offers a heartfelt and engaging atmospheric experience that resonates with players.

    • “Each chapter introduces a new protagonist, a different historical period, and a unique atmosphere.”
    • “Sound design further enhances the atmosphere.”
    • “Overall, a heartfelt, atmospheric game that’s absolutely worth your time.”

  • humor

    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The humor in the game is praised for being heartfelt and well-balanced, blending moments of genuine laughter with emotional and serious themes. The witty, well-written dialogues and character-driven humor add depth and charm without undermining the story's heavier topics, creating a memorable and emotionally rich experience.

    • “The voice actors all did so well conveying the message and I almost cried so many times either laughing (thanks, Erich!) or due to the episodes I think we all know.”
    • “Thank you so much, developers, for taking such a hard and emotionally difficult story and turning it into such a beautiful, funny, heartbreaking, and amazing game.”
    • “The dialogues are well written (and very funny in the first story), the art and graphics are lovely and the gameplay (so far) was relaxing!”

  • grinding

    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The grinding aspect is frequently described as tedious and slow, with progression hampered by unskippable dialogue and basic, repetitive gameplay. This limits enjoyment, especially during achievement hunting or lengthy story chapters, leading to frustration and diminished immersion.

    • “My biggest complaint about the game is that there are missable achievements on a first playthrough and you have to replay the game to 100% it, but there's no option to skip through dialogue making it really tedious to get those last few achievements.”
    • “The game is also very slow in its progression, with no option to skip dialogue or make your character run, which makes achievement hunting without a guide very tedious.”
    • “Especially one of the stories was very tedious to play and I nearly didn't finish it.”

  • stability

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game experiences some minor bugs and glitches, including clipping issues and occasional glitches in specific segments like the paper plane sections. While these stability problems can be somewhat annoying, they are not severe enough to significantly impact overall gameplay or cause major disruptions.

    • “It is a a little buggy and a bit annoying when it decides to save your progress, but overall nothing major or gamebreaking.”
    • “Game is buggy.”
    • “There are some small glitches, clipping problems, and inconsistencies that leave you more disappointed than satisfied by the end of the game.”

  • optimization

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    33% positive mentions, 34% neutral mentions, 33% negative mentions

    The optimization aspect is not directly addressed in the user texts, but the overall presentation suffers from lackluster writing and voice performances, which may indirectly affect the game's immersive experience and perceived polish.

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Critic Reviews

69%Critics’ scoreBased on 3 critic reviews
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Play Times

4h Median play time
4h Average play time
4-4h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 1 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

The Berlin Apartment is a casual simulation game with drama, mystery and historical themes. Common tags for The Berlin Apartment include first-person, indie, educational, linear, exploration and others.

The Berlin Apartment is available on Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5, Steam Deck and others.

On average players spend around 4 hours playing The Berlin Apartment.

The Berlin Apartment was released on November 17, 2025.

The Berlin Apartment was developed by Blue Backpack.

The Berlin Apartment has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked The Berlin Apartment for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

The Berlin Apartment is a single player game.

Similar games include Sunset, South of the Circle, Harold Halibut, 11-11 Memories Retold, Minute of Islands and others.