As SpongeBob runs across these locales, various tasks present themselves. Mr. Krabbs, SpongeBob's boss, wants him to deliver some Krab Patties to Patrick, who's hanging out in the Jellyfish Fields. A shortage of Fry Grease means SpongeBob has to borrow some from Plankton. A package must be delivered to Squidward, and SpongeBob needs to feed Gary, set his alarm so he wakes up in time for work, watch TV, and turn in his homework. These missions generally don't require much more than running from point A to point B, and there's only so many times one can travel through the same area before it gets old and tiresome.

The game attempts to vary things up by blocking off certain areas until SpongeBob acquires the superpower required to bypass the obstacle. It's a good idea, but these superpowers are only temporarily available in select areas, activated by standing on a superpower pad and inputting the on-screen button combination. With the needed superpower pad placed nearby the obstacle, there's no challenge, no thought required, to solve these puzzles. Boss fights are a little more engaging, requiring players to properly use the available powers figure out patterns and exploit weaknesses, but they're too infrequent to help liven things up. And though areas are remixed after certain events, the addition of more enemies doesn't make backtracking any more exciting.

Breaking away from the tedious 2D platforming, indoor segments call to mind classic adventure games such as Day of the Tentacle and Sam & Max in that they require SpongeBob to fully explore the area and its objects. The problem here is that the puzzles are quite basic, the solution generally within mere feet. For example, in order to call work, SpongeBob must find the Krusty Krab’s phone number. Moving a foot to the right, a message pops up informing the player that a nearby fridge can be opened, when then contains the number in question. Or later in the game, when the combination to a locker is carved onto a nearby desk. As with the platforming, these segments aren’t as fleshed out as they could be, the simplicity failing to provide any semblance of the challenge necessary to be considered worthwhile or rewarding.

Strangely, the game features no voice acting, at all. Instead, players must read block after block of text at the start and end of each mission. This creates an odd atmosphere, especially when SpongeBob loses all of his health and flies at the camera with mouth open, obviously screaming, and no sound emerges. For a feature that's been present in numerous Game Boy Advance titles, the absence of voice samples is considerably odd, especially given the relatively larger storage potential and power of the PSP.

Still, things could be worse. A "To Do" list ensures the player always has a general idea of what to do next, and also helps to keep track of SpongeBob's numerous tasks. The Bus System, transporting the player from one checkpoint to the next, helps to cut back, but fails to eliminate, the tedium of backtracking.

But the main problem with SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger is that it simply isn’t a compelling experience. There's something intrinsically tiring about having to help SpongeBob set his alarm and turn in his homework, and the platforming and puzzle solving required to fulfill these objectives isn't that noteworthy or exciting itself. With both tedious missions and tedious gameplay, it's a rather boring game. And considering the whole point of portable gaming is to prevent boredom, that's not exactly a glowing observation.