The game is set after the movie, during the Thor's-day Thursday festival, when the Vikings hold a large dragon tournament. Players take on the roles of Astrid or Hiccup, two human characters from the film. The gameplay is divided into three main elements: exploration, training, and combat.
Combat takes place in a 3D environment, where players control their dragons using melee and fire attacks. A meter builds up with each successful attack, allowing for powerful fire-based strikes. There's also a blocking mechanism, and each dragon has its own combo tree with special effects depending on the species.
Exploration allows Hiccup or Astrid to train their dragons, which can be customized to make them unique. As they train, players improve statistics such as strength and speed. They also need to complete quests, collect food, and maintain parameters like food, heal, mood, rest, and trust to achieve the best performance in combat.
Multiplayer modes focus on fighting, allowing players to challenge friends with dragons from different console versions of the game.