Oxygen Gauge

The Oxygen Gauge is a gameplay mechanic that appears the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a gauge that appears only underwater, showing the player how much time they have until they drown.

Description

The Oxygen Gauge has an identical shape to the Boost Gauge in Sonic Frontiers, with the only difference being that the color is orange instead of blue. The Oxygen Gauge acts as a way to show the player how much time they have until they drown. The Gauge can be refilled by exiting the water, reseting the timer. After 20 seconds in the water, the Oxygen Gauge will run out, and the player will drown.

Overview

Sonic Frontiers

In Sonic Frontiers, the Oxygen Gauge is an orange circle with the word "Oxygen" underneath. In this game, the Oxygen Gauge appears only underwater, with its only purpose being to show how much time the player can spent there before drowning. Usually, after 15 seconds, a sound effect will be heard, warning the player that they are going to drown. If a few seconds pass with the player being still underwater, Sonic will drown, however, this can be avoided if they exit the water.

On Rhea and Ouranos Islands, the player can encounter an enemy called Balloon, which can be only defeated by jumping across them. As this enemy is made out of water inside, the Oxygen Gauge will appear. Unlike any other body of water in this game, the sound effect will start playing after about 10 seconds instead of 15, with the Sonic Colors drowning theme playing instead of the new one and the classic countdown accompanying the music. There is also no way to escape unless the player destroys the enemy.