Doesn't it feel completely different to participate in a local community vs a federated community? Its so interesting how that works even if everyone can see everything everywhere.

What’s even cooler here is I feel we have the opportunity to have neighboring villages: I’m a villager in my instance, you’re a villager in your instance, and civility and understanding is promoted because we are in a real sense representatives of our respective villages. We don’t want to make our villages look bad.

Such a nice point! You gave me something to think about now :) In a way, while you are still anonymous, the instance gives you an outside identity. You don't have to remember the username to "know someone from the village" in a way the author describes it, the instance kinda already gives you this.

Especially since "villages" can completely block an entire other "village".

Keeps communities that don't want to be isolated more reasonable without having hardline rules

Well met, fellow villager named… uh… Barbarian