thread: 2013-10-08 : Recipe vs Game
On 2013-10-09, Piers wrote:
True story:
My interest in rpg-theory led to me repeatedly having this conversation with an ex-girlfriend: 'Look, I know you think the recipe would be better if we just changed that thing, but can we please just try it the way it is written one time before we alter it?' (Contribution of this conversation to why we aren't together anymore: none.)
But the recipe : rpg rules analogy doesn't really work. Or it might only work if we take the obduracy of certain ingredients into account: the recipe for bechamel sauce is not like rpg rules, or it is only to the extent that you are still faced with the conflict of getting the damn stuff to emulsify properly.
However, if you do want to think about writing recipes as analogous to providing clear and helpful rpg rules, I recommend the introduction to M. F. K. Fisher's With Bold Knife and Fork. Great stuff about the history of the recipe, what was originally left out, etc. Also probably the best writing in a recipe book.
