History Main / TimeLimitBoss

** You're given eight minutes to get through ''VideoGame/Persona3''[='s=] second full moon operation, which includes a boss fight. In the remake, ''[[VideoGame/Persona3Reload Reload]]'', a timer doesn't appear until the player finds the Priestess Arcana Shadow. The boss initially starts with a 30 minute time limit, which is pretty generous, until the Priestess Shadow uses "Invitation to Chaos", speeding up the train and cutting the time-limit in half with each time it's cast.
** Most bonus bosses in ''VideoGame/Persona3'' have a "turn limit" before they fire off a 9999 Almighty spell. In ''VideoGame/Persona4'', the ultimate bonus boss also does the same.
** ''VideoGame/Persona5'' imposes a 30 minute time limit on you for the fight against [[spoiler: Shadow Okamura]]. Its obligatory bonus boss is also timed, though in a different manner: Every few turns you must deal enough damage to them, failing which they'll get bored of fighting you and end things on the spot with an unavoidable TotalPartyKill instead of continuing the battle.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheFighters'' requires you defeat Dr. Eggman in just fifteen seconds. It's generally pretty easy to do, assuming he doesn't block excessively, but fail and it's off to the bad ending with you.

** ''VideoGame/DragonQuestVI'' has a SecretEnding where defeating the {{Superboss}} within a set number of turns results in him not only acknowledging your superiority, but also unleashing a complete and utter CurbStomp on the FinalBoss, laughing all the while. Of course, if you're leveled to the point where you can beat him that fast, said FinalBoss isn't exactly difficult, either.

** You're given eight minutes to get through ''VideoGame/{{Persona 3}}''[='s=] second full moon operation, which includes a boss fight.

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheFighters'' requires you defeat [[SpellMyNameWithAnS Dr. Robotonic]] in just fifteen seconds. It's generally pretty easy to do, assuming he doesn't block excessively, but fail and it's off to the bad ending with you.

* ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''

* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000RogueTrader'':
** The boss battle in the Adeptus Mechanicus monastery in Chapter 1 gives you two full rounds before the villain tampering with the main reactor [[GoingCritical succeeds in exploding it]], though you actually fight her {{mooks}} instead of the villain herself (who is behind a DeflectorShield). Killing the Electro-Priest {{Elite Mook}}s extends the time limit by one round each.
** The final boss of Chapter 1 is a Chaos Space Marine who progressively destroys the shuttles needed for the PlayerParty to get offworld [[spoiler:before the planet becomes a Daemon World]] (he takes the field by [[DynamicEntry crashing straight through the one you arrived aboard]]). You must kill him before he destroys all of them.

* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000RogueTrader'': The boss battle in the Adeptus Mechanicus monastery in Chapter 1 gives you two full rounds before the villain tampering with the main reactor [[GoingCritical succeeds in exploding it]], though you actually fight her {{mooks}} instead of the villain herself (who is behind a DeflectorShield). Killing the Electro-Priest {{Elite Mook}}s extends the time limit by one round each.

* Fighting [[BigBad Master Contra's]] second-to-last form in ''[[VideoGame/{{Contra}} Neo Contra]]'' if you have an A or S rank has you trying to take out the boss by shooting his cores with lock-on weapons in 30 seconds. Failure to do so will result in an instant GameOver.

* ''WebVideo/PiratesSMP'': {{Downplayed|Trope}} with the Vengeful Spirit miniboss in Fortresses; players have to beat the boss before it despawns after a certain time limit, with a small chance of dropping a Strange Object/Relic upon its defeat. However, fighting the boss in itself is optional -- players can leave the Fortress with their hard-earned gold before it spawns in, or they can outlast the boss until it naturally despawns; it just means that they won't get a Relic out of it, making getting enchantments and other perks significantly harder later in the series.

* ''Roleplay/DestroyTheGodmodder'': Several. The [=ACNTT=] had to be defeated before the godmodder went back to full health, and [[Webcomic/{{Homestuck}} Lord English]] had a four-round charge attack that would have supposedly given a game over.
* ''Manga/OnePiece'': In the Dressrosa arc, [[spoiler:Donquixote Doflamingo becomes this when he starts making the Birdcage (a giant dome of RazorFloss of doom, for the uninitiated) shrink and close down; If Luffy doesn't defeat him in an hour, the Birdcage will close and slaughter everyone but Doflamingo and his crew. It's only through the efforts of ''everyone'' on the island - pirate, civilian, soldier alike - that they manage to halt the Birdcage just long enough for Luffy, Law, Rebecca, and Viola (at various points) to defeat Doflamingo.]]

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'':

* ''VideoGame/StarFox64'' :

* ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'': During the final battle, [[spoiler:TN-1!Bane must be defeated within 10 minutes. Otherwise, the TN-1 takes full effect and not only does he become impossible to defeat, but he'll also kill you instantly if he gets in an attack.]]

* ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'': During the final battle, [[spoiler:TN-1!Bane must be defeated within 10 minutes. Otherwise, the TN-1 takes full effect and not only does Bane become impossible to defeat, but he'll also kill you instantly if he gets in an attack.]]

* ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'': During the final battle, [[spoiler:TN-1!Bane must be defeated within 10 minutes. Otherwise, the TN-1 takes full effect, and he will kill you instantly if he gets in an attack.]]

** Fatman in ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2'' is a different case. He plants time bombs during the battle, forcing you to deactivate it with coolant spray.
** ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid3'':

[[quoteright:240:[[VideoGame/WarioLand4 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wl4_cractus_battle.png]]]]

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': In the Dressrosa arc, [[spoiler:Donquixote Doflamingo becomes this when he starts making the Birdcage (a giant dome of RazorFloss of doom, for the uninitiated) shrink and close down; If Luffy doesn't defeat him in an hour, the Birdcage will close and slaughter everyone but Doflamingo and his crew.]]

* In ''VideoGame/SuperLedbianAnimalRPG'', at the beginning of his fight Clintson afflicts the whole party with a form of poison that will take 15 turns to kill them. The only way to get the antidote is to defeat him.

** Optional boss Gogo the Mimic in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'', in an unusually [[ClassicVideoGameScrewYous psychologically cruel]] variant on the trope. Gogo lives in a sunken tower, guarding a unique and valuable treasure (The [[AndYourRewardIsClothes Mime Job Class]]), so your party only has seven minutes to get in, get to the bottom, kill Gogo, get the treasure, and get out. Upon reaching Gogo, the player's instinct is to start unloading everything they have on him. However, he'll counter EVERYTHING you do with something that hurts even more -- even if you can deplete his HP this way, you won't have enough time to make it out alive. The [[PuzzleBoss trick]]? ''[[SheatheYourSword Do nothing]].'' Sit there as the counter ticks closer to CriticalExistenceFailure and do nothing but pray Gogo decides to wander off soon enough to allow you to leave alive, several minutes, usually. It's utterly nerve-wracking.

** At Katina, the player has a limited amount of time to defeat the mothership before it destroys the defense post. If this happens, the player will not lose a life, but proceed to the easier Sector X mission, rather than being given the opportunity to choose the more difficult Fortuna mission.

* ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'': During the final battle, [[spoiler:TN-1!Bane must be defeated within 10 minutes. Otherwise, the TN-1 takes full effect and he will you instantly if he gets in an attack.]]