Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is based on the animated movie of the same name. The story has the basic premise that Sid gets kidnapped by dinosaurs and his friends need to save him. During the course of the game, the player takes control over six characters - most of them vary notably regarding gameplay.
The majority of the time spent in the game is in a 3rd person platformer where the player controls their character while jumping over gaps, avoiding enemies and collecting items. Depending on the character, the player has different attacks at their disposal. There are also numerous levels with various mini-games, such as classic 2D platforming sections, side-scrolling shooters, balancing on a snowball, or dogfights while riding a pterodactyl.