YMMV / Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey

• Broken Base: The ride tends to be this among theme park fans, with many praising it for its effects and ride technology, while others criticize it for what they view as its near-incomprehensible storyline and sloppy pacing. Others don't like it because it's been known to cause extreme cases of motion sickness in some people, such as popular Theme Park Vlogger, Rix Flix.
• Ensemble Dark Horse: The Sorting Hat animatronic that appears just before the loading station is extremely popular with guests, and pictures of it are taken quite often.
• Germans Love David Hasselhoff: The ride and the area surrounding it was so popular that Universal Studios Japan wanted their own version ASAP. And so they got one.
• Nightmare Fuel: The entire scene with the Dementors. And the appearance of Aragog and his children, especially if you're arachnophobic.
• Once Original, Now Common: The ride is generally agreed to be the weakest major attraction at the Wizarding World parks, partially because of a backlash against rides that heavily rely on screens and motion simulators after Universal went overboard in developing those types of attractions in the 2010s. While Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts and Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure are both agreed to be more immersive and interesting than Forbidden Journey, it was still the opening day attraction that made Wizarding World a massive hit right away.
• Tear Jerker: Among the many killed in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting was Luis Vielma, a Universal employee who had worked for this attraction. Shortly after the tragedy, a small event was held in front of the ride where all those in attendance raised their wands up into the air in his memory. Here's a video of the ceremony, but be forewarned that it's not easy to watch.
• Special Effects Failure: The dragon's CGI has not aged well at all.
• They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot: Some particularly-obsessive HP trivia fans would've liked to hear Dumbledore's account of Hogwarts' history before heading out into the Forest with the Trio.
• Unexpected Character: The trio are skipping out on Professor Binns, who was completely Adapted Out of the film series. It's a treat to hear the movie actors talking about him.
• Visual Effects of Awesome: Nearly everything about the ride and its theming. They really made sure to have everything look like it came from the films. Special mention goes to the Sorting Hat, due to being an impressive practical effect despite the fact that the Hat has always been a CGI effect in the past.

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