It’s About Time places players in control of five playable characters as they traverse multiple levels, each filled with enemies, crates, Wumpa fruit and hazards, with the objective being to get from the start point to the goal as with the original trilogy. The game features two different game modes for players to engage in: Retro Mode, which focuses on the use of limited lives that require players to find additional ones during levels and forces them to restart a level should they run out; and Modern Mode, which replaces lives with a death counter that keeps track on each death in a level by its respective playable character. In addition, levels feature two separate variations, each of which features their own layout of hazards, enemies and objects – main story and “alternate timeline”.