Invincible

Invincibility (無敵), also called Invincible, Invinsible Protect and Invincible Barrier, is a general power-up in the Sonic the Hedgehog series which can be found in Item Boxes marked with either a four-pointed stars or a colorful, sparkling shield. When the player obtains this power-up, the playable character becomes immune to most damage-causing hazards for a short period of time.

The Invincibility first appeared in the original 16-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog and has since become a recurring power-up in the series. The effects of Invincibility have been mostly untouched, like the Super Rings, Power Sneakers and other power-ups in the series, but in several games it has possessed different features.

While Invincibility has not been as generally featured as it was in the earlier games, it is occasionally used in the latest entries as well, mostly appearing in 2D titles as well as 3D games that do not make use of the Boost technique.

Overview
Since the earlier games, when the player obtains the Invincibility power-up, the character can destroy enemies upon physical contact and cannot take damage from enemies and obstacles, though the player can still lose a life when being crushed under objects, drowning underwater, falling into a bottomless pit or if the timer exceeds 10:00 minutes. Invincibility is a fairly common item in the early stages, but becomes rarer in later levels, though it seems to appear more than 1-Up item boxes, although this is not always the case.

The duration of the Invincibility usually lasts about 15–20 seconds before it fades out, though the length of the Invincibility can differ between certain games; breaking another Invincibility item box while already under its effects can prolong the status and sometimes reset the fanfare related to the power-up as well. After the time runs out, the Invincibility will disappear and the player becomes vulnerable to enemies and obstacles once more.

When using Invincibility, the playable character is surrounded by a bright aura, which are able to metaphorically show when Invincibility is in effect. The visual aura effects from Invincibility differs between the games; when using Invincibility in the earlier games, the player is surrounded by a field of countless sparkling stars, while since Sonic Adventure, effects are seen featuring a colorful sparkling shield around the player. In Sonic Heroes, the effects around the player are glowing lines. Whilst Invincibility is in effect, the background music for the Zone changes to a dynamic-sounding theme, which is usually either a rendition of the game's main theme, or another track exclusive to Invincibility.

In spin-off titles, Invincibility can function and appear slightly differently from how it works in the main series, such as giving slight speed boosts. In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, if Sonic gets an Invincibility while he already has an elemental shield, he will not be able to use the shield's secondary effect until the Invincibility wears off.

Also, in Sonic Drift and Sonic Drift 2, Invincibility is featured as one of items in the game, which can be found in blue monitors called Blue Monitors (無敵BOX). When activated (in Sonic Drift 2 the player has to activate it manually), it makes the player invulnerable to obstacles on the tracks, while a familiar tune can be heard in the background.

In Sonic Labyrinth, there are featured odd, flashing objects that change their coloring and line formation all the time. If the player touches it and gets a red formation called Twinkle (トゥインクル), it gives Invincibility to Sonic.

In Tails' Skypatrol, Invincibility is a small orange stake with a star, standing on the ground, which Tails can pick up with the Ring.

Since Sonic Unleashed, Invincibility, along with most earlier power-up items, has become almost completely absent. When Sonic is using the Boost, it makes him temporarily invincible against enemies, but it does not protect him from hazardous obstacles.

In the Nintendo DS version of Sonic Colors, Invincibility was once again featured, this time being contained in Item Boxes, like in the earlier games.

This case later slightly repeats itself in Sonic Generations, where only Classic Sonic's acts feature them normally in Item Boxes. In the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Generations, however, Modern Sonic can also use Invincibility, with both types of acts having monitors with Invincibility.

In the episodic Sonic the Hedgehog 4, Invincibility is a fairly common power-up item, being found in Monitors and behaving as it did in earlier titles.

Also, while Invincibility is available to the player in normal gameplay, in the Wii U version of Sonic Lost World, players can share Invincibility power-ups through Miiverse.

Invincibility makes an appearance both as a regular and Equippable Item in Sonic Runners. When the player gets it from the Item Box, it creates aura of small stars around the playable character. Invincibility also makes an appearance in the sequel, Sonic Runners Adventure, and can be triggered only by Hero Type characters.

In Sonic Mania, and its expansion Sonic Mania Plus, Invincibility is found in Monitors, granting a similar effect to the 16-bit games, surrounding the player with a field of sparkling stars and usable by all the three playable characters.

In Sonic Forces: Speed Battle, Invincibility appears as a random power-up found in Item Boxes, granting a slight speed boost in addition to invulnerability against most obstacles and incoming attacks from opponent players, though it cannot destroy enemies. In this game, it can only be obtained by Classic Sonic, Knuckles and Vector. Metal Sonic can also use the item if he uses the Steal Item to steal it from the aforementioned users. (Omega was also able to obtain Invincibility, but, has since been replaced with Electro Boost as of Version 1.0.0).

In Sonic Forces, Invincibility appears as a general power-up item in Classic Sonic's stages. There is also a skill equipped to various Wispon that grants the Avatar invincibility for a brief time after collecting 100 Rings.

In Team Sonic Racing, Invincibility appears as an uncommon power-up. It grants temporary invulnerability to damage from rival Wisp power-ups and stage hazards, although the user will not be protected from falling off the track or into pits. Can only be gained through special item containers hidden on the tracks and not by normal Item Boxes.

Trivia

 * Several games in the series featuring Invincibility are known to have its own tracks related to the power-up which are not renditions of the game's main themes. A notable example is in the US version of Sonic the Hedgehog CD. There's one recurring theme from Sonic Adventure (titled "Invincible ...No Fear!" in soundtrack), that is later repeated and having more fast tempo in Sonic Adventure 2 (titled "Still Invincible... No Fear!" in soundtrack). Sonic Advance 2 and Sonic Advance 3 are known to have own independent themes and the Sonic Rush games have fast-paced mix playing as BGM.
 * The Invincibility theme from the original Sonic the Hedgehog has been the most reused one through the Sonic the Hedgehog series, as it can be heard with a more fast tempo in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic Advance and two different variations for Classic and Modern Sonic are featured in Sonic Generations.
 * The Invincibility theme in the Nintendo 3DS version of Sonic Lost World is an instrumental mix of the song "Sonic Heroes" from the same titled game, making it one of the rare times in the series using a main theme from a previous game.
 * The Invincibility theme in Sonic Drift is a faster variation of Green Hills Zone's music from the 8-bit version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2.
 * The Invincibility theme in Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 also has a contains a portion of Green Hills Zone's music in the background.
 * The Invincibility theme in Sonic Drift 2 is a faster version of the Invincibility theme from Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
 * Super transformations of playable characters usually grant invincibility during normal gameplay, though it only lasts for as long as the transformation can be maintained, which is tied to the Ring count that decreases one per second while in a Super State. Usually the player can be stunned by some of the bosses attacks, but in several games, more powerful attacks are able to damage the playable character on his super-form and even lose Rings.
 * In Sonic Heroes, when the player gets the Invincibility and tries to run into enemies, it does not destroy them, although it does damage them. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), the player is unable to defeat enemies by walking forward towards them while having Invincibility; instead, the player walks through the enemies without doing any damage.
 * In Sonic the Hedgehog 3 & Knuckles, as well as in Knuckles the Echidna in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, due to Sonic and Knuckles sharing different color palettes, the stars have red coloration instead of blue when the playable character is Knuckles. The Aqua Shield and S power-ups both share this trait, in the case of the former.
 * Sonic Generations features both Classic and Modern remixes of the Invincibility theme, but it is only possible to hear them both in the 3DS version.
 * The Invincibility theme in Sonic Mania has the exact same notes as the music for Panic Puppet Zone Act 1 in the Sega Genesis version of Sonic 3D Blast.