On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 97% based on 102 reviews, with an average rating of 8.15/10. The website's critical consensus reads, ""The King of Kong" is funny and compelling with more than a few poignant insights into human behavior. Director Seth Gordon presents the dueling King Kong players in all their obsessive complexity and with perfectly al dente observations." On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".