I came across an old mod in the forums today, it allowed you to spawn kids in the game and it got me thinking about the interesting benefits of having such a mechanic in Starbound proper. Just imagine you're playing hard core mode and you've made it through most of the game just to die to a boss somewhere, usually game over right and would under normal circumstances be true. Imagine before this tragic moment you had taken the time to start a family in the game, how incredibly satisfying would it be to have the option to play as your children in that case! It would allow the possibility of getting right back into the game but still keeping the devastating consequences of perishing that hard mode players desire. It makes hard mode a more viable option for everyone who plays but especially for busy fans of the game who normally cant invest their time in hard core mode, where dying would be more discouraging only for their lack of time available to make any progress in the story. On top of these benefits you would also open a new avenue of enjoyment for the other two versions of play , making it a win across the board, also I don't know programming but it feels like something this would take little changing to the game to integrate. SOMETHING I WOULD SUGGEST WITH THIS: NPC personalities need to be improved to get players invested in such a system, right now they are a bit too, two dimensional (no pun intended) to really get invested in or connect with on a personal level in anyway. You might be able to do this with a rudimentary list of personal thoughts and feelings they would be able to express to give them presence, also having NPCs that know you, be able to call you by your player name would be a small but effective way to personalize player interactions with them. Edit: I've noticed that something similar has been brought up in an older post and touches on a lot of ideas that I have stated above but I feel that my suggestion still has some unique ideas to add to that topic. To elaborate, I know the game has the list of thoughts characters can have from time to time, the difference is that with a romance system it would be nice to see NPCs display personal preferences, perhaps relating to a set of pre-made personalities with random variables that give them real long lasting desires. Example, they could have a shy disposition, maybe they're tough and like things and people that are tough, etc. It would determine what things you can bring them to increase an affinity score of some sort, maybe things like playing them a song something like that, basically a rudimentary dating simulator; something to make a lineage system interesting, fun, and engaging to experience.
I think it would be nice to see something for NPC characters like in Stardew Valley. You can befriend them, date them, marry them, and even be enemies with them. I would really like to see some more depth in the NPCs.