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« on: March 26, 2020, 09:47:05 AM »
I think it's possible to add this feature without it becoming political. I'd like to second for the notion of more complex "bonding relationships" between characters as suggested by Dr. Hossa above. If the relationship isn't directly spelled out, then there's no need to be overly concerned with being PC, as people can fill in the gaps as they like with RP (isn't that what we do anyway?).
I also like the idea of PC's relationships with NPCs going beyond just the "marriage" definition. Maybe an old man comes to live with me and I roleplay it's my aging father. Or a child is an adopted orphan. Or a fellow woman is my sister or my cousin or my weaving apprentice...you get the idea.
Perhaps a feature could be added where if a young man and young woman (either one being the PC) live together for at least one game year, there's some percent chance a baby appears. If some players feel strongly against this, it could even be a toggle on/off option.
To be honest, for me personally it's less important to have the game be a marriage simulator than it is just to have some kind of more complex social interaction so my world feels less empty and lonely. Just the addition of villagers remembering and greeting me made a huge difference, having a complex companion option would be icing on the cake. Even before adding a marriage feature, I would adore it if we occasionally ran into village events like harvest festivals, solstice ceremonies, the weddings of the villagers themselves, etc. Or if the replies to "How's it going" gave more answers than "Fine" - perhaps things like "It's great, we just had a baby born" or "What terrible weather, the crops might fail!" (which could prompt extra gratitude if the PC gifts food) or "Where did you get your fancy axe (shirt/shoes/etc)?" or "I'm fine but you're looking hungry, have some bread!" if the PC is a tribesman/woman with a good relationship with the village and is starving.