History YMMV / StarOceanTilltheEndofTime

** Nel and Clair. At one point, they share a hug (seen [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULB-xTWUnwI at 4:00-4:20]]), which the manga played up with both of them blushing and [[http:/mangapark.me/manga/star-ocean-till-the-end-of-time/s1/v4/c14/7 staring into each other's eyes.]]

* InferredHolocaust: [[spoiler:Luther did successfully wipe the Eternal Sphere- only for it to be restored and made practically its own independent reality. What will happen without 4D Beings moderating the universe? Is it "the same" as the simulated universe that was erased by technicality? No one really dwells on it nor does the ending really give much consideration ''to'' dwell on it; as far as the heroes are concerned, they saved their universe and that's all that mattered.]]

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Right as the party is about to enter the Urssa Lava Caves, a strange floating boy (who turns out to use ''wind'' attacks) comes out of entrance and challenges the group to the fight out of nowhere. He has no bearing to the plot and, after the fight, the game continues on like nothing ever happened. It doesn't help that he's an annoying boss due to ThatOneAttack.

* SequelDifficultySpike: ''Star Ocean III'' is noticeably harder than the previous two due to being more of a dungeon crawler and because some of the new combat mechanics ([[CombatantCooldownSystem stamina-based actions]] and MP Kill) discourages "button mashing."

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVZuVEwnZIQ "Highbrow"]] is an impressive, 10-minutes long piece of art. It is to be expected when Creator/MotoiSakuraba is doing the composing.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Many fans of the series, especially of ''The Second Story'', hate this game for the changes it made to the item creation system and other aspects. Most of the hate is not because of the changes but rather the new systems are unwieldy, overly dependent on randomness, insanely expensive, and very frustrating. In addition, said fans also hate the [[{{Retcon}} drastic change done to the setting itself]] with the infamous reveal that [[spoiler:the universe is all a GameWithinAGame]], which is considered to cheapen the plots of the first two games by rendering them [[spoiler:in-universe fiction]].

* BrokenBase: The infamous big [[TheEndingChangesEverything plot twist]] that [[spoiler:the characters are in an InUniverse [=MMORPG=]]]. Some fans hate it because not only it is an AssPull for this game, but it is also a retroactive one for the entire series that makes the rest of it [[ShaggyDogStory feel pointless]], since [[spoiler:none of it was real anyway]]. Others have praised for being daring and exploring a subject that is rarely touched upon. A [[TakeAThirdOption third group]] believes that the plot twist would have been better if it was either handled differently or featured in a standalone game instead of retroactively applying a drastic change to an already-established setting. Fans who jumped onto the franchise with this game tend to not see what the issue is.
* CriticalDissonance: This game is disliked by some fans, in particular for the aforementioned plot twist. However, it has an 80 on Metacritic, which is tied with fan favorite ''[[VideoGame/StarOceanTheSecondStory The Second Story]]'' for most highly rated game in the series.

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Many fans of the series, especially of ''The Second Story'', hate this game for the changes it made to the item creation system and other aspects. Most of the hate is not because of the changes but rather the new systems are unwieldy, overly dependent on randomness, insanely expensive, and very frustrating. In addition, said fans also hate the drastic change done to the setting itself with the infamous reveal that [[spoiler:the universe is all a GameWithinAGame]], which is considered to cheapen the plots of the first two games by rendering them [[spoiler:in-universe fiction]].

** The plot twist was wasted; it might have fared much better if it was used for something else, such as [[spoiler:having an ally turn out to be a player character mole or examining the impact common MMORPG behavior would actually have on its universe. However, it's more or less an AssPull for the sake of it, and brings up so many questions about the franchise that could never be properly addressed. It's telling that despite how heavy the twist is, almost no subsequent game has ever referenced it.]]

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: Many fans of the series, especially of ''The Second Story'', hate this game for the changes it made to the item creation system and other aspects, besides the plot twist. Most of the hate is not because of the changes but rather the new systems are unwieldy, overly dependent on randomness, insanely expensive, and very frustrating.

* NeverLiveItDown: Many fans still have trouble getting over the plot twist. It was so bad that [[AuthorsSavingThrow the next game provided a way out]] for those who didn't like it without completely retconning it for those who didn't mind.

%%* AssPull: The plot twist. Besides the implications it has for the entire series, it also comes right out of nowhere with almost no foreshadowing, which further compounds the ire it tends to get.

* AssPull: The plot twist. Besides the implications it has for the entire series, it also comes right out of nowhere with almost no foreshadowing, which further compounds the ire it tends to get.

* WhatMeasureIsANonBadass: Sophia gets a lot of hate, mostly for being a sweet-tempered NiceGirl instead of [[RealWomenNeverWearDresses something more aggressive like Nel or Maria]]. The fact that she joins late in the game ([[CantCatchUp and thus low leveled]]) did little to endear her to players. Also, because she is Fayt's childhood friend, she gets bashed from the DieForOurShip crowd as well. Finally, she has an IdenticalStranger who is the focus of an ill girl DamselInDistress side arc, and so she is associated with that.

* BrokenBase: The infamous big [[TheEndingChangesEverything plot twist]] that [[spoiler:the characters are in an InUniverse [=MMORPG=]]]. Some fans hate it because not only it is an AssPull for this game, but it is also a retroactive one for the entire series that makes the rest of it [[ShaggyDogStory feel pointless]]. Others have praised for being daring and exploring a subject that is rarely touched upon. A [[TakeAThirdOption third group]] believes that the plot twist would have been better if it was either handled differently or featured in a standalone game. Fans who jumped onto the franchise with this game tend to not see what the issue is.

* TheScrappy:
** Nel's subordinate Farleen, but only in the English version, and only because her voice actress' performance is near-universally panned. Listening to her speak would have you swear that the air of Elicoor II was full of helium. Many fans were relieved when Farleen [[TheOtherDarrin received a new voice actress]] in ''Anamnesis''.
** Adray is considered by many to be an unnecessary addition to the ''Director's Cut''/overseas versions. This is due to him being shoehorned into the plot and forced into your party. His subpar and overall awkward combat performance also earns him a lot of hate. The fact that he joins you instead of the actually-important fan favorite Clair or the similarly-liked Nel and Albel only makes things worse.[[note]]While Nel and Albel can be recruited, they are both optional characters.[[/note]]

** Roger is disliked for being a BrattyHalfPint and being completely useless in battles. His only saving grace is once you're forced to choose who you want to permanently join your final party, he's usually the first and easiest choice to leave out.

* AuthorsSavingThrow: The original Japanese version of the game was an ObviousBeta that necessitated a ''Director's Cut''.[[note]]It was coded with features that weren't backwards compatible.[[/note]] The ''Director's Cut'', which is what the overseas versions are based on, was better received.

* TierInducedScrappy: The two main Symbology users, Sophia and Adray, are often considered low tier characters overall as their Symbology spells eventually get overshadowed by faster, more damaging physical attacks of the other playable characters, although Sophia's Thunder Flare attack can stun lock enemies. Outside of their Symbology, they lack other good options since Sophia is slow and fragile while Adray's physical attacks tend to leave him wide open. To top it all off, they officially join the party at low levels in Disc 2, with Sophia re-joining at ''level 1''.[[note]]Although temporarily recruiting Adray in Disc 1 allows you grind some levels for him before he officially joins, that gets negated by moving his second stint in the party to a later point.[[/note]]

* TierInducedScrappy: The two main Symbology users, Sophia and Adray, are often considered low tier characters overall as their Symbology spells eventually get overshadowed by faster, more damaging physical attacks of the other playable characters, although Sophia's Thunder Flare attack can stun lock enemies. Outside of their Symbology, they lack other good options since Sophia is slow and fragile while Adray's physical attacks tend to leave him wide open. To top it all off, they officially join the party at low levels in Disc 2, with Sophia re-joining at ''level 1''.[[note]]Although temporarily recruiting Adray in Disc 1 allows you grind some levels for him before he officially joins.[[/note]]

** More than one person has been confused by Albel's gender. Must be that sarong, his [[ShesGotLegs nice]] legs, and the {{panty shot}}.

* WhatMeasureIsANonBadass: Sophia gets a lot of hate, mostly for being a sweet-tempered NiceGirl instead of [[RealWomenNeverWearDresses something more aggressive like Nel or Maria]]. The fact that she joins late in the game ([[CantCatchUp and thus low leveled]]) did little to endear her to players. Also, because she is Fayt's childhood friend, she gets bashed from the DieForOurShip crowd as well. Finally, she has an IdenticalStranger who is the focus of an IllGirl DamselInDistress side arc, and so she is associated with that.

* UncannyValley: The character models are all very high quality and look great compared to other games on the same system, but their movements are just so distinctly ''off'' at all times that everything generally looks weird.

** More than one person has been confused by Albel's gender. Must be that sarong, his [[ShesGotLegs nice]] legs, and the panty shot.

** More than one person has been confused by Albel's gender. Must be that sarong, his [[ShesGotLegs nice]] legs, and the PantyShot.

* JerkassWoobie: Albel Nox is a rather sadistic, aloof warrior but he has a rather tragic backstory involving [[spoiler:the loss of his left arm and his father from an incident pertaining to Albel being unable to tame a dragon. His anti-social behavior partially stems from not wanting to connect with others in fear of losing them as well]]. He also suffers from one hell of a HumiliationConga after being defeated and spared by Fayt in a duel, being stripped of his title of commanding officer and being left to rot in the dungeons of Airyglyph until pardoned to tame Crosell alongside Fayt and the others. His status only grows if you choose not to permanently recruit him, where he spends all his time training in Crosell's caverns simply because he has nothing better to do.

* BrokenBase: The infamous big [[TheEndingChangesEverything plot twist]] that [[spoiler:the characters are in an InUniverse [=MMORPG=]]]. Some fans hate it because not only it is a ShockingSwerve for this game, but it is also a retroactive one for the entire series that makes the rest of it [[ShaggyDogStory feel pointless]]. Others have praised for being daring and exploring a subject that is rarely touched upon. A [[TakeAThirdOption third group]] believes that the plot twist would have been better if it was either handled differently or featured in a standalone game. Fans who jumped onto the franchise with this game tend to not see what the issue is.

* ShockingSwerve: The plot twist. Besides the implications it has for the entire series, it also comes right out of nowhere with almost no foreshadowing, which further compounds the ire it tends to get.

** The plot twist was wasted; it might have fared much better if it was used for something else, such as [[spoiler:having an ally turn out to be a player character mole or examining the impact common MMORPG behavior would actually have on its universe. However, it's more or less a ShockingSwerve for the sake of it, and brings up so many questions about the franchise that could never be properly addressed. It's telling that despite how heavy the twist is, almost no subsequent game has ever referenced it.]]