Alright, finally in front of a proper computer.

This:

The ones that teach me some new way to perceive and understand real life. They exist! Or proceduralized descriptions of genre structures that have eluded me until I saw the interlocking gears. Or, sometimes, manipulative-as-fuck psychological tricks that move my emotions to a surprising place.

and this:

It’s because, I think, I love playing games so much that I both want to do better at it — which part of me believes I can do by understanding it — and want to be able to be in the penumbra of that glow even when not doing it.

really speak to me. From the first time I saw a manipulative gimmick in an RPG as an intentional piece of design to motivate certain kinds of play, that possibility to take them apart and try to understand how they work had been a big part of why I play games and why I seek out theory-friendly (or at least theory-ambivalent) online communities.

I think one of the elements I really appreciate about RPGs as an art or a form of entertainment is that they do construct that dialogue between the creator and audience, but that dialogue is distinct-but-linked to the dialogue at the table in play, and that both of those experiences, or some magic combination of them, can contribute to the positive experiences of play.