During combats the dragons are controlled directly and they fight in a 3D environment, using melee and fire attacks. Fire is built up through a meter for each successful attack, resulting in powerful fire-based strikes. There is also a blocking mechanism and each dragon has its own combo tree with special effects depending on the species.
During the exploration phase Hiccup or Astrid have to train the dragons. They can be customized to make them unique. Through training and winning tournaments statistics such as strength and speed can be improved. They also need to complete quests and collect food to keep the main parameters (food, heal, mood, rest and trust) at a high level to get the best performance in combat.