Virtual Villagers/YMMV

• Broken Base: While it seems almost impossible, Virtual Villagers suffered a massive broken base when the forums became extremely strict, scattering most (If not all) of the members who had been there since Virtual Villagers: A New Home. The same effect occurred with the games; the older veterans of the series believe the games stopped being charming at Virtual Villagers 4.
  • There was a huge amount of controversy around The New Believers. The "heathens" wore masks and had totems you were supposed to tear down. There is an ongoing storyline that runs through all five games, in which a tragedy caused the original Isolans to forsake their faith. In their old faith, magic and nature were balanced. The newcomers have the same faith, or come to believe in it as they restore the original people's deserted cities and settlements throughout the first four games. So the "conversion" was actually just a return to the old faith. But it looked horrible. No matter what the rationale, converting "heathens" to the "true faith" sounded really disturbing, especially since these "heathens" were the original inhabitants of Isola. Native American players, among others, were not amused.