From contemporary reviews, Nintendo Power reviewers George and Rob stated that game was very similar to the previous Adventure Island games, with George mentioning it became "very challenging in advanced stages" while Rob considered the game likable, but not groundbreaking. In GamePro, a reviewer said the NES game felt like a re-run of an old television series as the game's structure
and presentation are nearly identical to the earlier games in the series and that the graphics and music were not as strong as other NES games like Super Mario Bros. 3.
Reviewing the Game Boy port, Martin Klugkist in said the game was pretty average and "typical Game Boy monotony" with no new ideas and middling background graphics, music and sound. Klugkist only recommended it to dedicated fans of platform games while suggesting Super Mario Land 2 as a superior similar title. A reviewer in said the game was simple and implemented successfully, recommending it during due the current popular cycle of Dinosaur-related media.
From retrospective reviews, a review in Allgame said the NES version was not too different from the previous Adventure Island game, noting only the addition of a new dinosaur partner and that the graphics, sounds and gameplay are on par with Adventure Island II.