Game Over

Game Over refers to a situation in a video game, when the player has used all his lives, which were lost by getting hit by enemy, deadly obstacles, getting crushed, drown or falling to bottomless pits. The games are also known to show words "Game Over" in the screen after all lives are lost. Sonic the Hedgehog games involves to feature Game Over as well. In earlier games, when the player gets Game Over, he/she has to start at the beginning of the whole game.

After the save feature gets introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the player can always beginning from the first act of zone, where he/she got Game Over. Like in many Arcade games, if the player has got Continues from Item Boxes, Special Stages or any other way, the player is able to continue the game if he/she wants to. In SegaSonic the Hedgehog arcade game, the player has to insert more coins to cabinet in 10 seconds to continue, which otherwise leads to instant Game Over. In several games such as Sonic Adventure and Sonic Generations, the player gets to Game Over menu, the game asks to continue playing or return to the title screen or menu section of the game.

There are four Sonic games in the series, where Game Over hasn't feature at all. When the player gets loses all lives in Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic Heroes, Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), the player moves automatically to the menu without getting Game Over. However the player has to pass through the level again.

Trivia

 * When Sonic beats Shadow in their final showdown in Sonic Adventure 2, Sonic replies "Game Over, Shadow".
 * Similarly after the player defeats Diablon and Sonic at the Black Comet in Semi-Dark Story of Shadow the Hedgehog, Shadow says "Game Over, Sonic!", possibly refreshing their battle in Sonic Adventure 2.