History YMMV / FinalFantasyX2

** Humbaba. This thing not only hits like a truck, with Uppercut dealing around 1,500 damage and Tyrant Tail hitting the whole party for 800, its attacks also cause delays. It buffs itself with Mighty Guard, once at the start of the battle and again when its health reaches 66%, and casts Thundaga as well. Oh, and it ends the fight by casting Meteor, potentially taking your whole party out with it. Good luck!

** Humbaba. This thing not only hits like a truck, with Uppercut dealing around 1,500 damage and Tyrant Tail hitting the whole party for 800, its attacks also cause delays. It buffs itself with Mighty Guard, once at the start of the battle and again when its health reaches 66%, and casts Thundaga as well. Oh, and it ends the fight by casting Meteor. Good luck!

** Azi Dahaka can be a major headache if you don't realize it can be skipped. It has over 150k HP (which is more than all of the {{final boss}}'s phases ''combined''), his regular attacks have a HP-draining effect, and its Damocles Photon attack hits the entire party for 50% of ''max'' HP. Fortunately though, tou can skip it by solving a puzzle.
** The Experiment machina at Djose with all of its stats at Level 5 can wreck even a high-leveled party with ease. The (mercifully rarely used) Lifeslicer does damage equal to its target's max HP. Unless you're using a Garment Grid or accessory with Break HP Limit, you ''will'' die.

** Yojimbo's Zanmato does the same thing as Delta Attack, with the added "bonus" of depleting all of your MP. Oh, but keep in mind that he uses an attack which Poisons a target, so either guard against that or heal it, else you're in deep shit: At 1 HP, the ScratchDamage from Poison [[CherryTapping will kill anyone affected by it]].
** Almighty Shinra catches a lot of players off-guard. It's well, ''Shinra'', absorbing the pyreflies of Omega (who wasn't a terribly difficult enemy), with near-max stats and some of the strongest moves. Of course, any party who prepared for this battle will have it easy, but considering that YRP can charge blindly into most fights and win, this is one of the more memorable ones. He opens with Clione, which makes it difficult to outwit his A.I. script, since he will prompt YRP to go into recovery mode. Clione delivers non-elemental damage to random targets.

** Angra Mainyu, fought at the end of the cactuar sidequest. It has over 333,000 HP, is flanked by mooks that are immune to physical and magic damage respectively, has a powerful multi-hitting attack, inflicts lots of status effects and casts spells that lower your characters' stats. If you go into this fight completely unprepared or underleveled? Good luck beating it in less than an hour.

** The matchmaking/publicity side-quests, which requires you to walk up to random [=NPCs=] and pick from a list of five pitches each, which will prompt either a positive or negative response from the NPC. The problem is, without a FAQ or guide, you're given no clues whatsoever as to which statement to pick for which NPC. And if you want the best results for either side quest (especially for the former since it is required for OneHundredPercentCompletion), you have to be near-perfect. Now that's just pure sadism! You're thus reduced to either consulting a guide as mentioned earlier, SaveScumming to oblivion, or blowing all your money over the minigames at the Calm Lands building to boost your rep the slow way. Even if you ''do'' consult a guide for it, ''it's a game-spanning quest!''

** Did you hate the cactuar side-quest you needed to tackle in order to power up Rikku's weapon in the previous game? Well then you'll be [[SarcasmMode thrilled]] to learn that hunting 10 cactuars to complete a quest, including playing minigames with them, is required for 100% completion. But not only that, they are spread all over Spira this time, so good luck decoding the clues to find them all!

* FranchiseOriginalSin: A lot of fans hated how Yuna became DenserAndWackier, feeling it was a betrayal of the character that was seen in ''X''. Likewise, her HotterAndSexier outfits seem at odds with her modest kimono-inspired dress from the previous game. In the previous game, Yuna did have several moments of playfulness and goofiness -- playing along with a binoculars routine, the infamous fake-laughter sequence, being the referee for the Aurochs' foot race in Kilika, and Kimahri recounting a story of when she was younger and repeatedly jumped off a Shoopuff because she found it fun being picked up by its snout. Yuna was also the only one of the female characters to have a love scene in the game -- a very passionate make-out with Tidus in the Macalania Spring. Her wedding dress (the only other costume she wears) was also somewhat revealing. It's just that the first game's sombre tone meant that these were only occasional moments of levity, whereas the second game shows this side of Yuna much more prominently.

* GirlShowGhetto: Although it received positive reviews upon release, the game has a sizable hatedom partly due to being marketed to women, especially when compared to other ''Final Fantasy'' games. What's more is that in TheNewTens and TheNewTwenties, discussion shifted to how video games often have to walk a thin line creatively with their female protagonists (who are often {{Flawless Token}}s to avoid accusations of sexism). ''Final Fantasy X-2'' on the other hand had three female leads, all with very exaggerated personalities and more overtly feminine hobbies (changing clothes to get new abilities, a heavy emphasis on pop singing), thus leading the game to having a significant hatedom.
* HarsherInHindsight: One of the Fiend Tales depicts a Bomb pretending to be a blitzball to encourage a little kid (his best friend in the fiend's human life) to train hard. The audio drama has a scene of Tidus getting blown up by a grenade he thought was a blitzball.
* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct: One of the biggest gripes with ''X'' was Hedy Burress attempting to [[HongKongDub lip-sync with Yuna's model]], something the other actors didn't bother with, since the lip flaps weren't changed from Japanese. Burress had zero experience with voice acting, and her dialog felt wooden -- while one could argue this tone fit the character, it still got some criticism. The improved graphics in ''X-2'' allow the lip flaps to be rendered in real time, and Burress was likewise more expressive, ending up with a performance that was received far better. Even people who dislike the game cite Burress' improvements in the booth as one of the title's high points.

* MagnificentBastard: [[LoveMakesYouEvil Shuyin]] was [[FallenHero once a noble warrior]] trying to protect his love Lenne when he was executed with her and trapped inside the Den of Woe. Forced to relieve his death for a thousand years, Shuyin [[EnemyWithout became a vengeful spirit]], hellbent on ending all wars by putting Spira out of its misery with Vegnagun. Unleashed during a Crusade expedition, Shuyin loosens his wrath, killing everyone except for four survivors, and possesses Nooj, forcing him to non-fatally shoot the rest, lying inside dormant for his plan. Influencing Nooj to find Spheres and create the Youth League to track Vegnagun, Shuyin realizes he can't take the weapon with Nooj and so manipulates his host into allowing Shuyin to possess Baralai and carry on. All the while, Shuyin sowed chaos with his powers by summoning the Dark Aeon and even driving the Gullwings mad enough to nearly kill each other. With Vegnagun, Shuyin nearly succeeds in destroying to Spira, fighting until the end until Lenne's spirit manages to make him relent and finally accepts his defeat before going with Lenne to the Farplane in peace.

** Yuna's "Oh poopie!" line and Rikku saying not to talk like that and Yuna's indignant "I'm just copying you!" is quite goofy and childish -- but Hedy Burress and Tara Strong make it sound rather adorable all the same.

* TheScrappy: While Brother was likable enough in ''X'' (partly due to how useful he was in Blitzball), here his incestuous and childish antics tested the patience of more than one player. Brother also suffered from being a ReplacementScrappy for Cid.

** "All Songstress" team. A few players find this one pretty amusing, especially in the early parts of the game when you can only kill things using magic, which requires creative use of accessories and Garment Grids. You have to balance out which girl is using her MP and how much, so you don't [[DroughtLevelOfDoom reach a boss and have no way to kill them]]. Though the rest of the game can be easily-broken by cheesing the Dances and Songs.

** The reason the Cat Nip exploit was so popular is...seriously, bosses are ''so'' cheap in the later parts of the Via Infinito (it's on par with trying to do ''XI'''s late-game content having missed missables), and your own strength has been kneecapped compared to ''X''. Or ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII VII]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII VIII]]'', for that matter. So the 'grin and bear it' strategies that saw you through the tougher fights in ''X'' are no longer viable. You more or less ''have'' to finish off enemies quickly here, or you don't stand a chance.

* SpecialEffectFailure: As with its prequel, the lip-sync can be seriously off in places. The most notorious instance is Rikku's calling out "Monkey!", which is accompanied by so many lip movements that it looks like there was meant to be a whole line of dialogue there.

** Brother being madly in love with Yuna...when you remember that they're first cousins.
** After he jumps out of the Celsius trying to save her, when she thanks him for his efforts he seemingly leans in to try to smooch her, or at the very least try to cop an uncomfortably feely and exploitative hug.
* StrangledByTheRedString: A variation. Since ''X'' ended, Lulu and Wakka are now together and expecting a baby. There were approximately two scenes in the first game which hinted at a possible romance between them: The first being Lulu comforting him during the Blitzball finals, and the second being Tidus suggesting she hook up with him (which she flatly refused). Although it's entirely possible for them to make a love connection in the two year TimeSkip, especially since they both have had some more time to move on from Chappu and probably a lot more opportunity to bond and have fun now that Sin is gone.

** Did you hate the Cactuar side-quest you needed to tackle in order to power up Rikku's weapon in the previous game? Well then you'll be [[SarcasmMode thrilled]] to learn that hunting 10 Cactuars to complete a quest, including playing minigames with them, is required for 100% completion. But not only that, they are spread all over Spira this time, so good luck decoding the clues to find them all!

* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: A fair amount of people dislike the changes to [[SidetrackedByTheGoldSaucer Blitzball]], becoming a coaching minigame of sorts rather than an active sport.

** The Good and True endings, for some. There is no buildup or reason (except one vague line from Bahamut) to explain why [[spoiler:Tidus comes back two years after the events of ''X'', or how Shuyin's incident is related to him.]]

* UncertainAudience: Some male gamers were turned off by the sassy female leads and the dress-up aspect, while some female gamers were weirded out by the blatant fanservice. That's not to say there weren't fans who enjoyed those aspects (there are many cosplayers of all the Dresspheres), but they are more aspects that come off as polarizing when coming off the heels of the previous game.

** The English version of ''Last Mission'' was the nail in the coffin for many. Nothing is said about Tidus except for a few lines, which are so vague and oddly worded that they infer [[spoiler:Yuna dumped him for someone else, even after everything she did to bring him back]]. The Japanese version is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8mcNXGknM much more explicit]] in mentioning Tidus, so why the English version did this is particularly baffling.

** The English version of ''Last Mission'' was the nail in the coffin for many. Nothing is said about Tidus except for a few lines, which are so oddly worded that they infer [[spoiler:Yuna dumped him for someone else, even after everything she did to bring him back]]. The Japanese version is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8mcNXGknM much more explicit]] in mentioning Tidus, so why the English version did this is particularly baffling.

** The English version of ''Last Mission'' was the nail in the coffin for many. Nothing is said about Tidus except for a few lines, which were so oddly translated that they inferred [[spoiler:Yuna dumped him for someone else, even after everything she did to bring him back]]. The Japanese version is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8mcNXGknM much more explicit]] in mentioning Tidus, so why the English version did this is particularly baffling.

* AngstWhatAngst: Gippal has considerably less angst about his past than the other three [[spoiler:Crimson Squad survivors]]. He isn't flippant about those events, but you can tell there was a lesson learned. He's the only one who acknowledges [[spoiler:Paine when he meets her: He excitedly says "you!" but plays along when she pretends they've never met]].

** Yuna, due to how her personality evolves in this game. Some feel that her goofier personality and skimpier wardrobe was too much of a betrayal from how she had been portrayed in the first game. Others feel that Yuna did already have a mischievous, goofy side in the first game that had to be suppressed by the CrapsackWorld she lived in, and now after two years of peace and freedom it would make sense for Yuna to let her hair down more.
** Then there is the hotly-debated audio drama ''Final Fantasy X -Will-'', wherein Yuna breaks up with Tidus out of nowhere by claiming there is somebody else she loves, which caused some fans to lose all respect for the character (while others [[FanonDiscontinuity would rather not acknowledge it at all]]). The audio drama does have its defenders, though: Some have claimed that Yuna's infidelity is blown out of proportion and that there is plenty of evidence to suggest that she made the whole thing up.
** Chuami from the audio drama. You either like her for how direct she is, or...not. And that's without addressing her claim that she's Auron's daughter.
** Paine had an uphill battle to fight, being a new character to take Lulu's place in the female trio from the previous game. Some found her dull, especially in comparison to Yuna and Rikku's more heightened personalities, and others thought she was trying too hard to be an Auron {{expy}}. Others however found her a fresh addition, with her playing the {{foil}} very well to Yuna. Her more tomboyish personality was also seen as refreshing compared to the returning girls from ''X''.

** The game is definitely LighterAndSofter than its predecessor, and it's one of the lightest ''Final Fantasy'' series' entries. The game as a whole has a greater focus on comedy and {{Camp}}, the protagonists are far more upbeat and peppy than the previous title, and there's more focus on character development than plot. As such, there's quite a bit of arguing among ''Final Fantasy'' fans if this change was for the better or for the worse. Those who liked the change say that it's a natural progression since the Eternal Calm has arrived, argue that Yuna has already managed to [[EarnYourHappyEnding Earn Her Happy Ending]] and thus deserves to be upbeat, and that the gameplay elements are still very in-line with the series' staples. Those who disliked the change say that the game is chock full of {{Narm}} (which being a more optimistic entry can't excuse all by itself), the new characters feel like rehashes of old ones, and that the gameplay changes result in a "kitchen sink" approach that leaves the game without a clear direction. Either way, there's very little middle ground when it comes to opinions on ''X-2''.
** Opinions on the secret ending vary, since it's heavy on KarmicJackpot. There's thus debate if the true ending is pleasingly indulgent or just an AssPull. [[spoiler:Those who dislike Tidus coming BackFromTheDead say that it retroactively cheapens his sacrifice in the previous game. And washing up on Besaid just in time to be spotted by Yuna and the Celsius is one of those dramatic moments that strains the WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief. Those who like the ending argue that Tidus' resurrection was shown to be implicitly possible through Shuyin and the Dark Aeons, it's what Yuna had been working towards since becoming a Sphere Hunter, and both games had some {{foreshadowing}} that Tidus was coming back.]]

** Dark Knight. This Dressphere is essentially the complete package to a good number of players; not only is it the fastest Dressphere to master, it has the highest base Defense in the game, their signature Darkness ability is both a spammable (more so if you abuse the {{Good Bad Bug|s}} involving Spellspring) and non-elemental Magic Defense-piercing attack, and best of all, their auto-abilities essentially gives them permanent pseudo-Ribbon. The only thing that keeps the players from having a party full of Dark Knights is the need for a dedicated healer. And even then, Alchemists are about as complacent as Dark Knights thanks to their Stash ability, especially with Mega Potion.

** Two Machina with Impale (a relatively quick attack [[ArmorPiercingAttack which ignores Defense]]) is overkill, and three even moreso; even {{superboss}}es will get wrecked in seconds by seemingly innocuous and low-level machina.
* ContestedSequel: The LighterAndSofter tone contrasted sharply against ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX''. Probably the rest of the series too, aside from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII'' and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'' (which it shares gameplay similarities with). You either like it as a breath of fresh air to a normally dramatic franchise, or feel it's completely out of place and clashes with the tone of the previous game. Its soundtrack is also contested, due to not being composed by any of the series regulars and feeling ''very'' different compared to its prequel's, similarly being considered either refreshing in its own way or too drastically different from the previous game's. [[TakeAThirdOption There's also a sizable amount of fans that stand in a sort of middle ground]] of liking the game's various gameplay features but not being too fond of either its story or its soundtrack, in that while being okay in their own right, feel like very significant downgrades from ''X''.

*** Two words that will make many visitors of the Via Infinito quake in their boots: [[KingMook Mega Tonberry]]. Its attacks are [[LightningBruiser more powerful and frequent]] than its normal brethren, along with inflicting some nasty side effects if the target ''does'' survive. Contrary to popular belief, it doesn't ''require'' Cat Nip Gunner, it just requires players to be strategic in order to beat it. The Oversouled version also inflicts the Petrify status...unless the target has Stoneproof. In which case she'll just get hit with Confuse status instead, which ''cannot'' be blocked.

** Even among those that like the game, there's some fans who choose to ignore the GoldenEnding feeling that Yuna accepting Tidus' disappearance/death and moving on with her life is a much more thematically appropriate and moving ending than Tidus getting resurrected.
** The English version of ''Last Mission'' was the nail in the coffin for many. Nothing is said about Tidus except for a few lines, during which [[spoiler:Yuna talks about dumping him for someone else, even after everything she did to bring him back]]. The Japanese version is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp8mcNXGknM much more likely]] to mention Tidus, so why the English version reduced these numbers is baffling.
** The audio drama ''Will'' has few defenders. Yuna breaks up with Tidus because he's supposedly cheating on her, and then claims to be in love with someone else, all of which [[AssPull comes out of nowhere]]. A new character made specifically for the drama claims to be the daughter to Auron purely on the basis that her mother told her so. Lastly, Sin comes back into the picture just because someone or something wished it back. A lot of fans prefer to ignore the audio drama and preserve what they liked about the characters, and it's never been mentioned in any ''Final Fantasy'' media ever since. About the only things consistently brought as positives are that it explains how Sendings are handled without Summoners, and Lulu pointing out that people claiming to be Braska, Auron, or Jecht's illegitimate children for perks is a pretty common thing.