History YMMV / TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope

** One Aryan Brotherhood path involves [[spoiler: Zigfrid Schultz, i.e. Valery Yemelyanov, taking over. He professes the idea that Slavs descended from alien Hyperboreans, and that the Nazis are actually controlled by the Jews.]] This seems like something that was conjured up for the mod, yet in real life he held the ''exact same'' beliefs.

* TaintedByThePreview: While by no means the universal reception, announced complete reworks for much of the German sphere and some Russian warlords (like Sablin), including the removal of lots of the most beloved, iconic, and popular parts of the mod, have gotten a lot of pushback from many fans of the old content, especially those who, as described under BrokenBase, are not particularly swayed by the dev team's argument that their reworks will be more plausible and more true to the historical figures the mod is using to tell its stories. For a fair sized chunk of the fanbase, it's thoroughly smothered any excitement for the actual reworked content being announced, and previews and Q and As have turned into something they dread, a chance to hear about what old thing they liked is next in line for the chopping block. This trope, as well as the general feeling that it may have given the audience distorted ideas of how far along in development new content is or how close it is to completion, has led to a general slowdown of new previews overall.

* NauseaFuel: As Taboritsky the player is treated to [[spoiler:a report describing a chemical weapons test conducted on live human subjects in gruesome detail—as well as the difficulty of "draining" the "thick organic slurry" left over. "Our Regent is a great patron of the sciences."]]

** The Bogi Smerti, a warlord state that use to rise from RK Moskowien's collapse who use Satanic imagery to intimidate their victims, and the mystery surrounding their masked leader and his true identity have made them stand out enough to garner fascination from the fanbase. They and their leader the Antikhrist are often depicted in fan content, with some even hoping that they'd get a focus tree someday. While removed and hated by the Devs ([[https://old.reddit.com/r/TNOmod/comments/lzacs6/bogi_smerti_is_gone/gq0ewyk/ due to their entire lore being incoherent and their addition into the game being a complete joke on their part]]), the fanbase actually mourned their removal. Their SpiritualSuccessor, [[spoiler: the Brotherhood of Cain, a band of unironic crazy Satanist warlords who arise after Taboritsky's Holy Russian Empire collapses with his death]], is similarly popular.

*** [=BurgSys=] Komi: The chaotic Komi Republic is a source of much speculation, and one early dev statement sayign that "Komi can go every ideology" quickly led to speculations of a possible Burgundian System Komi path. The devs later statements flip-flopped between supporting [=BurgSys=] Komi and rejecting it[[labelnote:These include]]"Komi has one of the worst path in Russia, and one of the worst paths in the mod"; "Komi can go every ideology but one, and it's not the one you expect", "There is no [=BurgSys=] in the Komi power struggles", as well as a loading screen quote about a Russian who supports the Burgundian System.[[/labelnote]], causing further confusion and led to many off-the-wall guesses. Until release, practically nothing about this "worst Komi path" has been revealed by the developers. In the final game, [[spoiler: it turns out this speculation of the worst Komi path being Burgundian System Komi is ''real'', the one ideology they can't go is ''Conservative Democracy'', and earlier dev statements about [=BurgSys=] not being in Komi are ExactWords distractions intended to [[TrollingCreator screw with the community]] -- there's no [=BurgSys=] in the power struggle because the leader in question, Sergey Taboritsky, is first classified as a Fascist and does not reveal his true ideology until he has consolidated his rule and unified Western Russia.]]

** The Chinese fandom of TNO affectionally refers to [=ThePinkPanzer=], one of the former lead developers of the mod, as "Chairman Pink".

** Gus Hall is subject to many interpretations following the "Unfinished Business" update, which gave him a more nuanced portrayal and rescinded the developer mandate which demanded American communists and fascists to be equally evil. Is he a revolutionary champion finally putting some accountability on the American government? A hero who represents the shock needed to fix America and will fail, not because of his methods, but because of the the political system being inherently unfriendly to communism? A well-intentioned, but misguided templar who will inadvertently harm the country with his extreme tactics? A self-righteous zealot who cares more about proving his ideology right than actually doing justice? The lack of a full Hall term makes him even more ambiguous, for better or for worse.

** Himmler and Burgundy are controversial in the fanbase, related to arguments over whether ''TNO'' should lean more into fantasy or realism, stick to the original ideas of the mod or undergo dramatic refashioning. Supporters of the former enjoy Burgundy's role as a BigBad who represents the worst excesses of Nazism and tries to [[spoiler:manipulate global tensions in an attempt to start thermonuclear war]], arguing that it heightens the tension and scary tone of the mod, was an iconic part of the original story and setting, gave the country a uniquely colorful role in the Cold War, antagonistic towards all three superpowers, and not only tapped into real world neo-Nazi doomsday accelerationist ideas [[spoiler: like ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'']] but tied into the mod's central themes about the inherent self-destructiveness at the heart of Nazism. Those in the latter camps dislike Burgundy for competence-washing the SS as [[spoiler:a fiendishly-capable organization capable of influencing global events]] rather than FascistButInefficient and reducing the complex politics of the Cold War to a "cartoonish" conspiracy where a clear villain [[spoiler: is behind all sorts of massive global problems]]. Closely related, there are also divisions over exactly how stable Burgundy should be, with opinions ranging from Burgundy lasting all the way to its originally intended lifespan of 1981 to Burgundy not existing at all. There is also the debate over if the existence of Burgundy and-back when Esoteric Nazism was an ideology for even more unhinged Nazis and Nazi-adjunctent figures unintentionally whitewashes the evil of non-esoteric Nazis (to the point of supposedly promoting the "Clean Wehrmacht" myth) vs. the arguement that it dosen't and non-esoteric Nazis can be appropriately written as vile with enough ideological distinction with esoteric Nazis.

*** While overwhemlingly agreed to be [[HateSink politically and morally]] the worst person to lead the US in the mod, Francis Parker Yockey's role in the narrative has been contentious among the playerbase. Some fans think that his election breaks their suspension of disbelief, arguing that his openly anti-American and outright insane ideas are too fringe to ever get him elected. Rather, they prefer that the devs retcon Rockwell's death in the story and make him the leader of the [=ANV=] instead, pointing out how Rockwell held a pro-American outlook despite his hateful ideas even in the real world and can sell himself as a president due to his experience as an advertiser. Other fans however [[LoveToHate love the idea]] of an obscure far-right figure and their more insane ideas getting the limelight. They also argue that Rockwell is too "cliche" of an option to lead a Nazi movement in America and aesthetics aside, Rockwell's views were actually too moderate and closer to fascist-adjacent conservatism than full-blown Nazism (with his closest associates such as Matthias Koehl being far more genuinely embracing of Nazi ideology than him). There's also a middle ground of those who acknowledge the wild circumstances to get Yockey elected, but enjoy his potential as the ultimate failstate for the US nonetheless, or they do feel Yockey should be replaced but also acknowledge the critiques against replacing him with Rockwell, usually suggesting other infamous far-right figures of the time such as OTL Yockey ally Willis Carto[[note]]which was actually a suggestion endorsed by the ex-dev that came up with Yockey in the first place[[/note]] or leading members of other far-right groups like the John Birch society or the Columbian Party as alternatives instead.

** The West African War generally, being [[GreyAndGrayMorality an intentionally morally-murky conflict]], attracts a fair bit of this between the two native factions:
*** The West African Alliance's fans like how it is not aggressively trying to expand its influence through military force but is simply trying to ensure their own independence from both French colonists and pan-Africanists. The fact that most of its leaders are corrupt, self-serving kleptocrats who rule over sham democracies designed to enrich themselves as one of their own is almost completely overlooked or viewed as a lesser evil compared to the PALF and FMA. The WAA's detractors also point out that their leaders' real motivation for autonomy and independence might not be as charitable as it appears to be--they are completely willing to accept the French colonisers, either as one of their own (in the WAA-PALF scenario) or outright as their overlord again (in the FMA-PALF scenario), and of course their ill-gotten gains would be forfeit if the socialist pan-Africanists topple them from power.
*** Opponents of the Pan-African Liberation Front criticise Cameroon as the aggressor in every incarnation of the West African War and agree with the other independent West African states who see pan-Africanism as so hegemonic that it's little different from old-school colonialism and have to be brought in by force, or that even ''within'' Cameroon regions aren't thrilled about the lack of federalized autonomy, erupting into civil war if Cameroon loses the war. Its supporters, on the other hand, view Cameroon's socialism and unwavering opposition for colonialism in all of its forms as the only way for Africans to be truly free from exploiters both native and foreign.

** Komi's Ultravisionary Socialists are repeatedly described as an insane cult masquerading as a legitimate science-focused technocracy, hiding massive human rights abuses behind a facade of beautiful futuristic aesthetics and rhetoric about human scientific progress and space travel, wretched at actually governing a nation, and even in Kardachev's reformist path there's a decade of mismanagement and authoritarianism to dismantle, if he even can, given he ''does'' still seem to admire his predecessor on some level. But they have many unironic fans who want to believe there're good ideas worth salvaging in there, usually admittedly because they're fans of the beautiful futuristic aesthetics and rhetoric about human scientific progress and space travel.
** Apart from being put in as a joke, the Bogi Smerti were meant to be a loathsome bandit gang whose defining trait, the HollywoodSatanism posturing, was only an act to scare their victims away from their possessions for easy looting; they were even more pathetic and fake than they would be without it. Many fans, however, willfully looked past that and ran off with the premise of Satanist warlords, to enough chagrin for the developers that (along with other reasons) the faction was ultimately scrapped. [[spoiler: Though they ''did'' get some {{Spiritual Successor}}s in the form of the Brotherhood of Cain in [[WorldGoneMad the post-Holy Russian Empire]].]]

** Russian players also have a negative view of the [[TokenGoodTeammate Gang of Four]] despite them being the best option of Germany and laying the foundations for Germany to eventually get rid of Nazism. This is due to the devastating impact of neoliberalism in Russia and how the Gang could be read as the equvilent of Gorbachev or Yeltsin, but for Nazi Germany instead.

** Russian players also have a negative view of the [[TokenGoodTeammate Gang of Four]] despite them being the best option of Germany due to the devastating impact of neoliberalism in Russia and how the Gang could be read as the equvilent of Gorbachev or Yeltsin, but for Nazi Germany instead.

* AmericansHateTingle: In addition to Russian players for very obvious reasons, Latin American players also have a extremely negative view of Boris Yeltsin's portrayal as one of the better unifiers for Russia. This is because of the devastating impact of neoliberalism on multiple Latin American economies, and the association of neoliberalism with multiple US-basked dictators (the most infamous being Chile's UsefulNotes/AugustoPinochet) that imposed the economic system at gunpoint often with massive political murders and repression involved.

** Players that do not like [[spoiler: Heydrich's portrayal]] in the mod feel that it might have been a more engaging narrative to see a full 10-year campaign examining just how horrifying a SS-run Germany would look like rather than a linear campaign culminating in an [[EvilVersusOblivion second civil war]] and the final collapse of Germany. However, with a Heydrich rework planned for the future along with a German lore rework, they just get their wish in exploring what such a nightmare state would look like.

** Many players feel that the mod's usage of the Burgundian System is really a ThemeParkVersion of Nazism, and doesn't really delve into the actual reasons behind Nazism's evils, or the actual extreme ideas of real fringe Nazi ideologues. Some especially point to Himmler's focus on his [[spoiler:nuke plot]] as a negative as it is fully fictional and totally divorced from the reality of Nazism. This is especially notable when it is taken into consideration that some of the other SS states and characters (Ohlendorf in Ukraine) have motivations and ideologies that more closely fit in-line with the real-life SS.

** Albert Speer is much more liked in the Chinese community than the Western TNO fanbase. This is possibly due to some of his similarities with OTL Deng Xiaoping: stabilizing the country after a period of totalitarianism and chaos and changing some of the most problematic elements of the old regime, but ultimately with the goal of maintaining and saving the regime, not ending it.

*** While overwhemlingly agreed to be [[HateSink politically and morally]] the worst person to lead the US in the mod, Francis Parker Yockey's role in the narrative has been contentious among the playerbase. Some fans think that his election breaks their suspension of disbelief, arguing that his openly anti-American and outright insane ideas are too fringe to ever get him elected. Rather, they prefer that the devs retcon Rockwell's death in the story and make him the leader of the [=ANV=] instead, pointing out how Rockwell held a pro-American outlook despite his hateful ideas even in the real world and can sell himself as a president due to his experience as an advertiser. Other fans however [[LoveToHate love the idea]] of an obscure far-right figure and their more insane ideas getting the limelight. They also argue that Rockwell is too "cliche" of an option to lead a Nazi movement in America and aesthetics aside, Rockwell's views were actually too moderate and closer to fascist-adjacent conservatism than full-blown Nazism (with his closest associates such as Matthias Koehl being far more genuinely embracing of Nazi ideology than him). There's also a middle ground of those who acknowledge the wild circumstances to get Yockey elected, but enjoy his potential as the ultimate failstate for the US nonetheless, or they do feel Yockey should be replaced but also acknowledge the critiques against replacing him with Rockwell, usually suggesting other infamous far-right figures of the time such as J.B. Stoner or Willis Carto as alternatives instead.

** Himmler and Burgundy are controversial in the fanbase, related to arguments over whether ''TNO'' should lean more into fantasy or realism, stick to the original ideas of the mod or undergo dramatic refashioning. Supporters of the former enjoy Burgundy's role as a BigBad who represents the worst excesses of Nazism and tries to [[spoiler:manipulate global tensions in an attempt to start thermonuclear war]], arguing that it heightens the tension and scary tone of the mod, was an iconic part of the original story and setting, gave the country a uniquely colorful role in the Cold War, antagonistic towards all three superpowers, and not only tapped into real world neo-Nazi doomsday accelerationist ideas [[spoiler: like ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'']] but tied into the mod's central themes about the inherent self-destructiveness at the heart of Nazism. Those in the latter camps dislike Burgundy for competence-washing the SS as [[spoiler:a fiendishly-capable organization capable of influencing global events]] rather than FascistButInefficient and reducing the complex politics of the Cold War to a "cartoonish" conspiracy where a clear villain [[spoiler: is behind all sorts of massive global problems]]. Closely related, there are also divisions over exactly how stable Burgundy should be, with opinions ranging from Burgundy lasting all the way to its originally intended lifespan of 1981 to Burgundy not existing at all. There is also the debate over if the existence of Burgundy and-back when Esoteric Nazism was an ideology-an ideology for even more unhinged Nazis and Nazi-adjunctent figures unintentionally whitewashes the evil of non-esoteric Nazis(to the point of supposedly promoting the Clean Wehrmacht Myth) vs. the arguement that it dosen't and non-esoteric Nazis can be appropriately written as vile with enough ideological distinction with esoteric Nazis.

** Heydrich's path [[spoiler:and the SS Civil War]] is a contentious topic. Some fans love the twisting narrative of a [[spoiler: Himmler-Heydrich conflict, the colorful cast of warlords that emerge in the chaos,]] and the horrifyingly dark tone of the story, especially with the ending of [[spoiler: Central Europe collapsing and ramping up the threat of nuclear terrorism as the final legacy of the Nazi regime]]. Other fans dislike the path as a strictly linear campaign with limited replayability, a drastic mischaracterization of Heydrich and the SS as a whole, and [[spoiler: a [[TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter wasted opportunity]] to explore an SS-led Germany]]. The announcement of a future Heydrich rework into a conventional path (in which he can stay in power after the game ends in 1982) has further divided the base over whether [[spoiler: the SS Civil War should be kept in and to what extent.]]

** The fanbase is fairly split between those who want the mod to embrace the original story ideas, even if some of them seemed silly or over-the-top, and those who want to take the mod in a more serious and historically-accurate direction. The former camp contends that focusing so much on plausibility kills a lot of the creativity and memorable content in the setting, arguing that the premise is so unrealistic, that the mod should embrace it more, especially when some of the "silly" stuff in question is beloved and iconic, making for a good story and a fun, interesting exploration of ideas, in particular using the timeworn "Nazi victory scenario" to express strong anti-fascist themes via demonstrating the self-destructive short-sightedness of that ideology while also examining why the adherents of radical ideologies will double-down when [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome reality slaps them in the face]], with the existence of even more radical ideologies(ie: Ultranationalism) and subideologies(ie: Fascist Mysticism and the subideologies that used to make up Esoteric Nazism) than "normal" Fascism and Nazism being seen as an effective tool to hammer that point home to the audience. Meanwhile, the latter assert that being more realistic heightens the narrative drama and preserves the audience's suspension of disbelief, maximizing the mod's potential to explore the relatively plausible implications of an Axis victory in World War II, or arguing that presenting fascism as self-destructive makes it seem like less of a threat, and that presenting variants of Fascism and Nazism as more unhinged than the rest can potentially end up whitewashing seemingly more grounded Fascists and Nazis and unintentionally perpertuate specific far-right and Clean Wehrmacht myths about the Second World War. (For what it's worth, the developers have steadfastly insisted they only remove content when they feel they can come up with something better to replace it with, rather than "just" to try to enforce "realism", through some of them did feel that Esoteric Nazism was whitewashy during the time where it existed)

** The fanbase is fairly split between those who want the mod to embrace the original story ideas, even if some of them seemed silly or over-the-top, and those who want to take the mod in a more serious and historically-accurate direction. The former camp contends that focusing so much on plausibility kills a lot of the creativity and memorable content in the setting, arguing that the premise is so unrealistic, that the mod should embrace it more, especially when some of the "silly" stuff in question is beloved and iconic, making for a good story and a fun, interesting exploration of ideas, in particular using the timeworn "Nazi victory scenario" to express strong anti-fascist themes via demonstrating the self-destructive short-sightedness of that ideology while also examining why the adherents of radical ideologies will double-down when [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome reality slaps them in the face]], with the existence of even more radical ideologies(ie: Ultranationalism) and subideologies(ie: Fascist Mysticism and the subideologies that used to make up Esoteric Nazism) than "normal" Fascism and Nazism being seen as an effective tool to hammer that point home to the audience. Meanwhile, the latter assert that being more realistic heightens the narrative drama and preserves the audience's suspension of disbelief, maximizing the mod's potential to explore the relatively plausible implications of an Axis victory in World War II, or arguing that presenting fascism as self-destructive makes it seem like less of a threat, and that presenting variants of Fascism and Nazism as more unhinged than the rest can potentially end up whitewashing seemingly more grounded Fascists and Nazis and unintentionally perpertuate specific far-right and Clean Wehrmacht myths about the Second World War. (For what it's worth, the developers have steadfastly insisted they only remove content when they feel they can come up with something better to replace it with, rather than "just" to try to enforce "realism.")

** The fanbase is fairly split between those who want the mod to embrace the original story ideas, even if some of them seemed silly or over-the-top, and those who want to take the mod in a more serious and historically-accurate direction. The former camp contends that focusing so much on plausibility kills a lot of the creativity and memorable content in the setting, arguing that the premise is so unrealistic, that the mod should embrace it more, especially when some of the "silly" stuff in question is beloved and iconic, making for a good story and a fun, interesting exploration of ideas, in particular using the timeworn "Nazi victory scenario" to express strong anti-fascist themes via demonstrating the self-destructive short-sightedness of that ideology while also examining why the adherents of radical ideologies will double-down when [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome reality slaps them in the face]], with the existence of even more radical ideologies and subideologies being seen as an effective tool to hammer that point home to the audience. Meanwhile, the latter assert that being more realistic heightens the narrative drama and preserves the audience's suspension of disbelief, maximizing the mod's potential to explore the relatively plausible implications of an Axis victory in World War II, or arguing that presenting fascism as self-destructive makes it seem like less of a threat, and that presenting varients of Fascism and Nazism as more unhinged than the rest can potentially end up whitewashing seemingly more grounded Fascists and Nazis and unintentionally perpertuate specific far-right and Clean Wehrmacht myths about the Second World War. (For what it's worth, the developers have steadfastly insisted they only remove content when they feel they can come up with something better to replace it with, rather than "just" to try to enforce "realism.")

** Himmler and Burgundy are controversial in the fanbase, related to arguments over whether ''TNO'' should lean more into fantasy or realism, stick to the original ideas of the mod or undergo dramatic refashioning. Supporters of the former enjoy Burgundy's role as a BigBad who represents the worst excesses of Nazism and tries to [[spoiler:manipulate global tensions in an attempt to start thermonuclear war]], arguing that it heightens the tension and scary tone of the mod, was an iconic part of the original story and setting, gave the country a uniquely colorful role in the Cold War, antagonistic towards all three superpowers, and not only tapped into real world neo-Nazi doomsday accelerationist ideas [[spoiler: like ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'']] but tied into the mod's central themes about the inherent self-destructiveness at the heart of Nazism. Those in the latter camps dislike Burgundy for competence-washing the SS as [[spoiler:a fiendishly-capable organization capable of influencing global events]] rather than FascistButInefficient and reducing the complex politics of the Cold War to a "cartoonish" conspiracy where a clear villain [[spoiler: is behind all sorts of massive global problems]]. Closely related, there are also divisions over exactly how stable Burgundy should be, with opinions ranging from Burgundy lasting all the way to its originally intended lifespan of 1981 to Burgundy not existing at all. There is also the debate over if the existence of Burgundy and-back when Esoteric Nazism was an ideology-an ideology for even more unhinged Nazis and Nazi-adjunctent figures unintentionally whitewashes the evil of non-esoteric Nazis(to the point of supposedly promoting the Clean Wehrmacht Myth) vs. the arguement that it dosen't and non-esoteric Nazis can be approperiately written as vile with enough ideologicla distinction with esoteric Nazis.

** The fanbase is fairly split between those who want the mod to embrace the original story ideas, even if some of them seemed silly or over-the-top, and those who want to take the mod in a more serious and historically-accurate direction. The former camp contends that focusing so much on plausibility kills a lot of the creativity and memorable content in the setting, arguing that the premise is so unrealistic, that the mod should embrace it more, especially when some of the "silly" stuff in question is beloved and iconic, making for a good story and a fun, interesting exploration of ideas, in particular using the timeworn "Nazi victory scenario" to express strong anti-fascist themes via demonstrating the self-destructive short-sightedness of that ideology while also examining why the adherents of radical ideologies will double-down when [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome reality slaps them in the face]]. Meanwhile, the latter assert that being more realistic heightens the narrative drama and preserves the audience's suspension of disbelief, maximizing the mod's potential to explore the relatively plausible implications of an Axis victory in World War II, or arguing that presenting fascism as self-destructive makes it seem like less of a threat. (For what it's worth, the developers have steadfastly insisted they only remove content when they feel they can come up with something better to replace it with, rather than "just" to try to enforce "realism.")

** Himmler and Burgundy are controversial in the fanbase, related to arguments over whether ''TNO'' should lean more into fantasy or realism, stick to the original ideas of the mod or undergo dramatic refashioning. Supporters of the former enjoy Burgundy's role as a BigBad who represents the worst excesses of Nazism and tries to [[spoiler:manipulate global tensions in an attempt to start thermonuclear war]], arguing that it heightens the tension and scary tone of the mod, was an iconic part of the original story and setting, gave the country a uniquely colorful role in the Cold War, antagonistic towards all three superpowers, and not only tapped into real world neo-Nazi doomsday accelerationist ideas [[spoiler: like ''Literature/TheTurnerDiaries'']] but tied into the mod's central themes about the inherent self-destructiveness at the heart of Nazism. Those in the latter camps dislike Burgundy for competence-washing the SS as [[spoiler:a fiendishly-capable organization capable of influencing global events]] rather than FascistButInefficient and reducing the complex politics of the Cold War to a "cartoonish" conspiracy where a clear villain [[spoiler: is behind all sorts of massive global problems]]. Closely related, there are also divisions over exactly how stable Burgundy should be, with opinions ranging from Burgundy lasting all the way to its originally intended lifespan of 1981 to Burgundy not existing at all.
** Both failstate presidents for the US are rather divisive due to debates over whether they fit TNO's narrative or if it is actually possible for the US to break down completely that radical fringe voices can take over in the first place(with those that believing that it isn't possible believing that a Wallace that doubles down on Jim Crow or Schafly are sufficiently bad enough for the US), and if there were more plausible options on the extreme left and right for leading the US than the failstate presidents the game currently has.

** Gus Hall is subject to many interpretations following the "Unfinished Business" update, which gave him a more nuanced portrayal and rescinded the developer mandate which demanded American communists and fascists to be equally evil. Is he a revolutionary champion finally putting some accountability on the American government? A hero who represents the shock needed to fix America and will only be hindered by reactionary forces in the nation? A well-intentioned, but misguided templar who will inadvertently harm the country with his extreme tactics? A self-righteous zealot who cares more about proving his ideology right than actually doing justice? The lack of a full Hall term makes him even more ambiguous, for better or for worse.
** Is Morita Akio's mission to reform Guangdong a righteous mission to alleviate its worst inequalities or is it merely prolonging an inherently unnatural state by which the Chinese and Zhujin will never be on equal footing to the Japanese?

** Is the United States and the OFN a noble faction that can truly make a positive impact on the world by stopping the spread of fascism? Or are they an authoritarian police force that gives UnwantedAssistance to selfishly spread their own global influence and are only ''slightly'' less bad than the other factions?

** Boris Yeltsin's portrayal is extremely contentious. On one hand, Americans and Western European players tend to find the portrayal of him as one of the better options for Russia to be a interesting story and a fresh change of pace in contrast to Yeltsin's [=OTL=] reputation, while non-western (especially Latin American and Russian) players usually find this to be a blatant whitewashing of a figure that used authoritarian means to consolidate power when Parliament would not give him what he wanted, subsequently sicced soldiers onto Parliament, and led Russia to disasater in the name of an economic system perceived to have caused immense misery to the Global South.

** The West African War generally, being [[GreyAndGrayMorality an intentionally morally-murky conflict]], attracts a fair bit of this:
*** The Free French has fans who love the idea of their romantic desire to reclaim their homeland from fascism so much that they overlook the colonial exploitation they inflict on the native Africans whose stolen land they're squatting on, or that their victory requires the sacrifice of thousands of Africans and (especially if they formed the French Military Alliance) ensures that all of West Africa will be firmly under the French thumb for the foreseeable future, ensuring that ''their'' homeland is being saved at the expense of someone else's.
*** The Pan-African Liberation Front's fans champion its values of socialism and anti-colonialism without acknowledging that Cameroon is the aggressor in every incarnation of the West African War, that its brand of Pan-Africanism is so hegemonic that even other socialist, democratic, and non-colonial states in the region see losing their autonomy to Cameroon as little different from being colonized by Europeans and have to be brought in by force, or that even ''within'' Cameroon regions aren't thrilled about the lack of federalized autonomy, erupting into civil war if Cameroon loses the war.
*** The West African Alliance's fans like how it is not aggressively trying to expand its influence through military force. The fact that most of its leaders are corrupt, self-serving kleptocrats who rule over sham democracies designed to enrich themselves and are willing to consider their former French overlords as one of their own is almost completely overlooked or viewed as a lesser evil compared to the PALF and FMA.

*** The Free French has fans who love the idea of their romantic desire to reclaim their homeland from fascism so much that they overlook the colonial exploitation they inflict on the native Africans whose stolen land they're squatting on, especially in their French Military Alliance route, or that their victory in said route ensures that all of West Africa will be firmly under the French thumb for the foreseeable future, ensuring that ''their'' homeland is being saved at the expense of someone else's.

*** And even the West African Alliance, usually the [[ALighterShadeOfGrey least-worst option in the conflict]], since it's the only one that's not aggressively trying to expand its influence through military force, is willing to tolerate local dictators and strongmen as part of the Alliance; after all, it's possible for them to admit the Free French.

** Richard Nixon [[InsistentTerminology is no crook]]! Just let him [[https://old.reddit.com/r/TNOmod/comments/ktsxz2/a_crook_no_longer/ run a clean campaign]] or have him rein the [=R-Ds=] in and [[https://youtu.be/VO00HIY_lPU he'll save America!]] If only because he sets his sights on the NPP, whose ilk includes segregationists and Nazis.

** Berezniki, a Russian warlord state that plays a role in Vyatka's storyline, gets this in more recent times due to how they have been designated for removal by the creators since before release. Its reputation already stems from its removal being constantly delayed, but has exacerbated from it managing to outlast a number of the old devs, who left before it could be officially scrapped from the mod. This has even spread to other unifiers, as when Yuri Galanskov was replaced as the chief ideologue of the idealistic anarchists in the Siberian Black Army. When its removal was announced to come with the long-delayed Toolbox Theory update, fans are suggesting that the mod will either be cancelled or that Toolbox Theory's release will never come. Alternatively, the Order of Saint George, which has absorbed Berezniki's former territory, is getting some of the same treatment in their place for "defeating" them. Fittingly, its final erasure was [[https://i.redd.it/rkgmw0ykdgo71.png a hilarious comedy of errors]].

** Emil Maurice, the Civil-war leader of Madagaskar, is memetically {{Woobie}}fied by the fanbase, building up from his backstory of how he ended up in Madagaskar. This is also acknowledged by the official discord server with their [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/460865117844668417.png :whyismauriceherejusttosuffer: emoji.]]

*** The Free French has fans who love the idea of their romantic desire to reclaim their homeland from fascism so much that they overlook the colonial exploitation they subject the native Africans whose stolen land they're squatting on, especially in their French Military Alliance route, or that their victory in said route ensures that all of West Africa will be firmly under the French thumb for the foreseeable future, ensuring that ''their'' homeland is being saved at the expense of someone else's.

** The West African War generally, being [[GreyAndGrayMorality an intentionally morally-murky conflict]], attracts a fair bit of this. The Free French has fans who love the idea of their romantic desire to reclaim their homeland from fascism so much that they overlook the colonial exploitation they subject the native Africans whose stolen land they're squatting on, especially in their French Military Alliance route, or that their victory in said route ensures that all of West Africa will be firmly under the French thumb for the foreseeable future, ensuring that ''their'' homeland is being saved at the expense of someone else's. The Pan-African Liberation Front's fans champion its values of socialism and anti-colonialism without acknowledging that Cameroon is the aggressor in every incarnation of the West African War, that its brand of Pan-Africanism is so hegemonic that even other socialist, democratic, and non-colonial states in the region see losing their autonomy to Cameroon as little different from being colonized by Europeans and have to be brought in by force, or that even ''within'' Cameroon regions aren't thrilled about the lack of federalized autonomy, erupting into civil war if Cameroon loses the war. And even the West African Alliance, usually the [[ALighterShadeOfGrey least-worst option in the conflict]], since it's the only one that's not aggressively trying to expand its influence through military force, is willing to tolerate local dictators and strongmen as part of the Alliance; after all, it's possible for them to admit the Free French.

** Free France has its fair share of fans who love the romanticist idea of French exiles, after spending more than two decades away from home, returning to liberate the Métropole from the Nazi collaborationists. The fact that Free France is still a colonial empire and will sacrifice thousands of Africans who will never receive the rights they were promised upon the Liberation, as France transitions from old-school colonialism to neocolonialism, is often glossed over or at best treated as a necessary evil.

** Nagano Shigeto is a contemptible imperialist [[spoiler:and shows how much of a horrific GeneralRipper he is when he initiates his coup, enacting a nationwide massacre of torturing and gunning down civilians in a similar manner to the Rape of Nanjing.]]