History YMMV / TimeSplitters

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny:
** The first game isn't regarded well nowadays due to its bare-bones presentation and lacking the features introduced in the sequels.
** One of the most widely praised elements of the series is its visual style, which combines realistic models, textures and lighting systems with exaggerated character designs and animations. In some ways, ''[=TimeSplitters=]'' was ahead of its time now that many modern games aim for a similar mix of realistic and cartoonish elements in their visual presentations. ''[=TimeSplitters=]'' thus may come off as significantly less unique today, especially as the ageing graphics take away some of the style's shine.
* SequelDifficultyDrop: Pretty much everything is much easier to handle than in ''[=TimeSplitters=] 2''. The infamous Virus Arcade League missions are much easier (and take place in the Honorary League instead of the Amateur League), the aiming system is more precise, the story mode's Hard difficulty isn't as mercilessly difficult as the one in the previous game, ammunition is excessively plentiful, and more characters and features are unlocked at the start.

* ContestedSequel: ''Timesplitters: Future Perfect'' is often considered inferior to the second game either due to abandoning its Goldeneye roots and/or being very glitchy. However it's usually regarded for more emphasis on the story and some well done humor to make up for it.

** In ''Future Perfect'', earning the gold medal for the Astro Jocks level is an extremely difficult task. The platinum medal is all but impossible.

*** Atom Smasher. First off, you have a TimeLimit. It increases every time a bomb is defused. There are five (four in easy) of them and the the time limit stops if all of them are defused. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! You the player cannot defuse a bomb, so how do you defuse it? Have a nearby scientist NPC do it, and if all the nearby scientists are dead, [[UnintentionallyUnwinnable kiss your win goodbye.]] One of them is a crane game which doesn't require a scientist at all. In hard mode, there are no scientists near the second bomb. Instead there are two of them are on fire on the other room with checkpoint, and they will die if the fire is not put out fast enough. Oh, and [[CheckpointStarvation the only checkpoint is near the start of the level]].

*** Atom Smasher. First off, you have a TimeLimit. It increases every time a bomb is defused. There are five (four in easy) of them and the the time limit stops if all of them are defused. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! You the player cannot defuse a bomb, so how do you defuse it? Have a nearby scientist NPC do it, and if all the nearby scientists are dead, [[UnwinnableByMistake kiss your win goodbye.]] One of them is a crane game which doesn't require a scientist at all. In hard mode, there are no scientists near the second bomb. Instead there are two of them are on fire on the other room with checkpoint, and they will die if the fire is not put out fast enough. Oh, and [[CheckpointStarvation the only checkpoint is near the start of the level]].

** "Neo-Tokyo" in ''[=TimeSplitters=] 2'', which opens with a lengthy StalkingMission.
** "Mansion of Madness" in ''[=TimeSplitters=]: Future Perfect''. On top of legitimately being pretty creepy, the level's incredibly small weapon selection means you'll be using the slow-loading shotgun for almost everything. The fact that the zombies take a ton of damage on every part of their body except the head means you could end up wasting precious ammo on one of them whose head just won't come off. Then there's the climb up to and out of the attic, where the level really throws the zombies equipped with shotguns at you. Because of the shotgun's slow reloading time and small number of shots between reloads, it's very easy to get pinned down and shot while you're reloading.
** "The Hooded Man" in Future Perfect. You have to protect [[spoiler: your past self from Time Assassins and [=TimeSplitters=] until he gets to the base]] it doesn't get bad until the Splitters show up though.
** "Something to Crow About". Powerful enemies who can fill you full of plasma in a few seconds, shielded enemies you have to switch quickly to the Electrotool and back to defeat, flying mechs not unlike the "boss" of U-Genius U-Genix, annoying rolling robots, the stage is ''long'', there are two bosses, and the latter of those two bosses is ThatOneBoss.
** The "Robot Factory" in ''Timesplitters 2'' is one. With [[EverythingTryingToKillYou dozens of robots often teleporting in on you]], [[EliteMook stronger robots]] that take a lot of hits to go down and wield the deadliest weapons in the level, turrets and floating mines waiting around corners, and your default weapon's laser being able to bounce back and hit you, this level is frustrating to beat [[NintendoHard even on Easy difficulty]]. Good luck getting the ''Rad Racer'' cartridge on Hard.....
** The "Atom Smasher" in ''Timesplitters 2'' is also considered this. First off, you have a TimeLimit. It increases every time a bomb is defused. There are five (four in easy) of them and the the time limit stops if all of them are defused. Sounds easy, right? Wrong! You the player cannot defuse a bomb, so how do you defuse it? Have a nearby scientist NPC do it, and if all the nearby scientists are dead, [[UnwinnableByMistake kiss your win goodbye.]] One of them is a crane game which doesn't require a scientist at all. In hard mode, there are no scientists near the second bomb. Instead there are two of them are on fire on the other room with checkpoint, and they will die if the fire is not put out fast enough.

** Mexican mission is in the same era as Wild West.

* AuthorsSavingThrow: ''Rewind'' ditches the dates assigned to the levels, thereby avoiding any potential [[ContinuitySnarl continuity]] and [[IWantMyJetPack historical]] errors.

* ScrappyWeapon: In ''[=TimeSplitters=] 2'', the Sci-Fi pistol is often a bigger threat than the basic mook in Robot Factory. The lasers fired from the pistol always bounce off surfaces if it doesn't hit a target, and is fired in three-shot bursts, often resulting in your own lasers hitting you. It also cannot be dual wielded. Future Perfect allowed the reflection mode to be turned off (and it is by default), and can be dual-wielded [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap making this weapon far safer to use]].

** The new Training ground is missing all the turrets and cameras.

** The "Ufopia" map in Timesplitters 2 is not used for any Arcade League or Challenge missions, while the "Site" map is only used for one.

* UnderusedGameMechanic: ''Future Perfect'' introduces the Time Disruptor Grenade, which causes time to slow down for anyone caught in its radius, giving you the chance to shoot them while they're stuck in slow motion. It also emits instant damage upon impact. It's an incredibly creative weapon that also [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome looks fantastic in motion]], but it is sadly consigned to just two story missions ("Breaking and Entering" and "You Genius, U-Genix") and nowhere else, likely due to troubles implementing slow down in multiplayer.

** Much of the Honorary League in Arcade League in ''Timesplitters 2'' is this, especially after the [[ThatOneLevel Virus series]] and the [[DifficultySpike Men in Grey]] mission, at least until the "Outnumbered But Never Outpunned" series, where it becomes difficult again (the Arcade League in ''Timesplitters: Future PErfect'' is more linear in its difficulty progression, notably the Virus series is located in the Honorary League instead of the Amateur League).

* HilariousInHindsight: What does Big Tony say when Jake Fenton finally reaches him? "[[WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom FEN-TOOOOOON]"]!

** Much of the Honorary League in Arcade League is this, especially after the [[ThatOneLevel Virus series]] and the [[DifficultySpike Men in Grey]] mission, at least until the "Outnumbered But Never Outpunned" series, where it becomes difficult again.

* ScrappyWeapon: In ''[=TimeSplitters=] 2'', the Sci-Fi pistol is often a bigger threat than the basic mook in Robot Factory. The lasers fired from the pistol always bounce off surfaces if it doesn't hit a target, and is fired in three-shot bursts, often resulting in your own lasers hitting you. Future Perfect allowed the reflection mode to be turned off (and it is by default), [[RescuedFromTheScrappyHeap making this weapon far safer to use]].

* UnderusedGameMechanic: ''Future Perfect'' introduces the Time Disruptor Grenade, which causes time to slow down for anyone caught in its radius, giving you the chance to shoot them while they're stuck in slow motion. It's an incredibly creative weapon that also [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome looks fantastic in motion]], but it is sadly consigned to just two story missions ("Breaking and Entering" and "You Genius, U-Genix") and nowhere else.

** "Nice Threads". Assault match, yes, but this time it's on Scrapyard, so prepare to meet a trio of Sentry Bots and a whole bunch of autoguns both outside and inside. Thankfully enough, there's a Lasergun near your spawn, so you can use that to break inside easily without dying.

** ''[=TimeSplitters=] 2'' has the Sentry Robots in "Robot Factory". They're often armed with plasma rifles or rocket launchers, and they take a ''ton'' of hits to kill.

* MostAnnoyingSound:
** The Space Flies from [=TS2=], with their incessant buzzing that grows to impossibly loud volume as you get closer to them.
** The 'you are leaving the challenge area, you have three seconds to return' sound from [=TS2=] challenges, which immediately plays the second the player leaves the (often ambiguously vague) challenge area and then repeats for every second the player tries to get back into the challenge area.
** ''Timesplitters 2'' has a harmless-but-irritating glitch where the Lasergun's or Minigun's "wind up" noise will become really loud and will play endlessly at the spot you were standing when you were unlucky enough to trigger it.