<s>
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
is	O
an	O
experimental	O
art	O
game	O
created	O
by	O
Rod	O
Humble	O
and	O
released	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
in	O
March	O
2007	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
uses	O
only	O
simple	O
colored	O
shapes	O
that	O
the	O
player	O
interacts	O
with	O
using	O
a	O
mouse	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
combining	O
heavily	O
constrained	O
mechanisms	O
for	O
interaction	O
and	O
control	O
with	O
abstract	O
visuals	O
,	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
encourages	O
experimentation	O
and	O
meaning-making	O
based	O
on	O
kinds	O
of	O
engagement	O
and	O
interpretation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
player	O
interacts	O
using	O
only	O
mouse	B-Device
movement	O
,	O
hovering	O
over	O
abstract	O
shapes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Humble	O
is	O
a	O
video	O
game	O
industry	O
veteran	O
,	O
known	O
for	O
his	O
roles	O
in	O
the	O
development	O
of	O
several	O
successful	O
games	O
,	O
including	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
,	O
The	B-Application
Sims	I-Application
,	O
and	O
Second	B-Application
Life	I-Application
,	O
though	O
his	O
independent	O
work	O
is	O
noted	O
for	O
its	O
experimentation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
is	O
his	O
second	O
attempt	O
at	O
a	O
game	O
which	O
derives	O
personal	O
meaning	O
primarily	O
through	O
mechanics	O
rather	O
than	O
audio	O
,	O
video	O
,	O
or	O
other	O
traditional	O
storytelling	O
,	O
following	O
A	O
Walk	O
With	O
Max	O
and	O
preceding	O
Stars	O
Over	O
Half	O
Moon	O
Bay	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
is	O
comparatively	O
and	O
intentionally	O
more	O
abstract	O
than	O
its	O
predecessor	O
to	O
further	O
restrict	O
the	O
role	O
played	O
by	O
more	O
traditional	O
audio	O
,	O
video	O
,	O
and	O
storytelling	O
elements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
core	O
ideas	O
behind	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
began	O
while	O
Humble	O
was	O
on	O
a	O
trip	O
to	O
Carmel	O
,	O
California	O
,	O
with	O
his	O
wife	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
developed	O
over	O
the	O
weeks	O
that	O
followed	O
through	O
a	O
process	O
he	O
described	O
as	O
"	O
like	O
carving	O
with	O
the	O
grain	O
of	O
the	O
wood	O
or	O
painting	O
with	O
the	O
brushstrokes	O
rather	O
than	O
against	O
them.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
two	O
prominent	O
squares	O
represent	O
the	O
partners	O
in	O
the	B-Application
marriage	I-Application
,	O
while	O
the	O
circles	O
are	O
external	O
variables	O
that	O
affect	O
the	O
squares	O
in	O
different	O
ways	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Following	O
its	O
first	O
public	O
showcase	O
at	O
the	O
2007	O
Game	O
Developers	O
Conference	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
released	O
as	O
freeware	B-License
in	O
March	O
2007	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
has	O
been	O
the	O
subject	O
of	O
analysis	O
in	O
both	O
video	O
game	O
journalism	O
and	O
academic	O
research	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Games	O
studies	O
scholar	O
Ian	O
Bogost	O
categorized	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
as	O
a	O
"	O
proceduralist	O
game	O
,	O
"	O
which	O
"	O
rely	O
primarily	O
on	O
computational	O
rules	O
to	O
produce	O
their	O
artistic	O
meaning.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Bogost	O
compared	O
it	O
to	O
Braid	B-Application
and	O
Passage	B-Application
,	O
games	O
which	O
share	O
several	O
properties	O
:	O
"	O
procedural	O
rhetoric	O
,	O
introspection	O
,	O
abstraction	O
,	O
subjective	O
representation	O
,	O
and	O
strong	O
authorship.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Games	O
researcher	O
Theresa	O
Claire	O
Devine	O
used	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
as	O
a	O
case	O
study	O
to	O
develop	O
her	O
methodology	O
evaluating	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
Art	O
(	O
in	O
the	O
sense	O
of	O
high	O
art	O
,	O
opposed	O
to	O
low	O
art	O
)	O
in	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Designer	O
Jason	O
Begy	O
used	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
to	O
flesh	O
out	O
his	O
definition	O
of	O
an	O
"	O
abstract	O
game	O
,	O
"	O
looking	O
at	O
the	O
way	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
objects	O
operate	O
as	O
"sign[s]	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
fiction	O
"	O
while	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
lacking	O
"	O
relation	O
between	O
their	O
form	O
and	O
their	O
function.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Media	O
studies	O
lecturer	O
Sebastian	O
Moring	O
expanded	O
on	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
abstraction	O
by	O
putting	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
at	O
the	O
center	O
of	O
a	O
common	O
dichotomy	O
in	O
video	O
game	O
studies	O
,	O
between	O
simulation	O
and	O
metaphor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
took	O
issue	O
with	O
the	O
majority	O
of	O
scholars	O
who	O
wrote	O
about	O
the	O
game	O
and	O
called	O
it	O
metaphorical	O
,	O
arguing	O
that	O
while	O
it	O
is	O
tempting	O
to	O
consider	O
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
metaphorical	O
simply	O
because	O
of	O
its	O
abstraction	O
,	O
lacking	O
the	O
audiovisual	O
clues	O
that	O
a	O
simulation	O
would	O
typically	O
have	O
,	O
it	O
is	O
more	O
accurate	O
to	O
think	O
of	O
it	O
as	O
a	O
simulation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
not	O
a	O
"	O
mimetic	O
simulation	O
"	O
like	O
The	B-Application
Sims	I-Application
3	I-Application
,	O
but	O
"	O
a	O
low	O
fidelity	O
simulation	O
...	O
because	O
of	O
its	O
very	O
abstract	O
semiotics	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
few	O
implementations	O
of	O
possible	O
love	O
relationship	O
activities	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
mechanics.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Engadget	B-Application
described	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
critical	O
response	O
as	O
"	O
enormous	O
"	O
,	O
noting	O
the	O
attention	O
it	O
received	O
from	O
both	O
inside	O
and	O
outside	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Rather	O
,	O
"	O
the	O
central	O
point	O
 [ is ] 	O
that	O
if	O
both	O
needs	O
were	O
not	O
satisfied	O
,	O
the	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
dies	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	B-Application
Marriage	I-Application
also	O
more	O
directly	O
inspired	O
two	O
games	O
by	O
designers	O
Petri	O
Purho	O
and	O
Brett	O
Douville	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Purho	O
,	O
who	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
the	O
most	O
interesting	O
game	O
presented	O
"	O
at	O
the	O
2007	O
Experimental	O
Gameplay	O
Workshop	O
,	O
created	O
The	O
Divorce	O
as	O
an	O
April	O
Fools	O
 '	O
Day	O
clone	O
of	O
Pong	B-Application
with	O
a	O
similar	O
artistic	O
explanation	O
.	O
</s>
