You take control of the titular Dragon Hawk and must kill a number flying creatures such as buzzards, phoenixes, dragon puppies and others by pouncing on them from above - similar to Joust. Naturally, your enemies can kill you in the same way. To keep the Dragon Hawk in the air, you have to rapidly press the fire button in order to make him flap his wings.

The faster the Dragon Hawk flaps its wings, the more difficult it is to control. However, if you are taking too much time, lighting bolts will start to shoot from the sky. To stand a chance against the increasingly tough groups of enemies, you receive an extra life at every 1000 points. Killed enemies also drop feathers that can be collected for extra points. Once you have defeated all standard enemies, you must face a large, fire-breathing serpent.