Tidus is not an awesome character, except maybe by the end. He is the epitome of an average character up to that point, which I honestly believe is what they were going for. The bigger problem for most people is simply his voice.
As far as VIII goes, I still maintain that was the worst battle mechanics for any game that can be classified as the classic style JRPG. Story is more subjective, but for me it fell apart after Disc 1. And the orphanage twist is the second worst twist in all of gaming history.
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"One toot on this whistle will take you to a far away land."
-Toad, SMB3