Lives SystemResource

Player has a finite number of attempts; losing all lives resets progress to a defined point or ends the game.

A Mario-style life stock: a ×N counter of attempts; fall in the pit to lose one and respawn, and at zero it's GAME OVER.

How lives system works in Godot

Lives are a single countdown integer that gates retries. At zero, the run ends — it's the macro-stakes layer above per-hit health.

intprimitive

A lives counter in GameState. Death decrements it; reaching zero is the game-over condition, distinct from losing one health bar.

var lives := 3
func on_death():
    lives -= 1
    if lives <= 0: game_over.emit()
    else: respawn()

Signalsprimitive

Emit lives_changed and game_over so the HUD and the scene flow respond — one for the icons, one for the end state.

signal lives_changed(n)
signal game_over

Marker2Dnode

A respawn point the level defines. On a non-final death, warp the player back to the active checkpoint marker.

func respawn():
    player.global_position = current_checkpoint.global_position

In short: lives int in GameState; on health_depleted: decrement lives or emit game_over signal

Retro games that use lives system

…and 73 more in the interactive database →

153 catalogued game(s) use this mechanic, spanning 1983–1999.

Related resource mechanics

▶ Explore Lives System interactively — see every game + the Godot system