Outside of the mini-games, gameplay consists of six buttons, four to move Dexter, one to 'talk' and start the mini-games, and another to look through special goggles in order to see the hidden blue print pieces. Inside the various mini-games, the mechanics can change drastically. In the
DDR-type games, it's simply a matter of pressing the buttons that show up on the screen. The racing game takes on a simplified version of
Mario Kart's controls, removing the brakes and power slide buttons. Probably the simplest game consists simply of running after a 'computer' bug and smacking it with a fly swatter using the R1 button.
Starting with the animated intro straight out of the cartoon, Dexter's Laboratory: Mandark's Lab? sets up to disappoint. With very attractive visuals and a few catchy themes, it starts out looking like it may be quite an entertaining ride, until you realize that the game consists of nothing more than uninspired mini-games. While it's obvious the focus of this game is an audience of very young children, I don't think it was necessary to dumb down the gameplay quite THIS much. I get the feeling Red-Lemon Studios used a young target audience as an excuse for making a game that I've quite simply found lacking.