A while back, inspired by an Ideas Forum posting that WindBorn pointed out, I posted a proposal for a "Community Kitchen. That proposal needed to be re-worked to fit with current game features and mechanics, but I wanted to let everyone know that we have a Community Kitchen that is now operational.
The Community Kitchen is a group whose mission is to prepare food for distribution to the community in ways that will enhance the game experience (especially for newer players) and in ways that will contribute to creating social spaces where people can meet new people, chat within a shared context, form friendships, find ways to help each other, etc. The Community Kitchen also offers advice on completing quests and achievements, and opportunities to gain XP by cooking from Recipe Bags and Recipe Boxes. To add to the fun, Moz Art recently has created Food ChallengeUr, and we hope to have additional challenges and contests in the future.
When group halls are introduced, we'd like to have a place where players can drop in at any time, refill their energy and mood, socialize, find partners for cooperative activities, etc. In the meantime, since creating a persistent social space of this kind does not seem possible with the current game, we aim to provide food for temporary social spaces and ad hoc public events (when we know of them) to help make them a fun experience. In addition, we hope to encourage a pro-social culture in Glitch by following the example of the generous players who leave gifts of food for others to find, and by contributing food to efforts such as the Sandbox group's Operation Welcome Wagon.
Membership in the Community Kitchen group is by invitation, and any current member can invite. Currently, there are four levels of membership: Kitchen Keepers are experienced players who act as the group's administrators. Senior Cooks are players who have reached at least level 25, have mastered at most or all of the cooking skills, and have significant cooking achievements. Kitchen Staff are players who participate in the work of the Community Kitchen by gathering ingredients or preparing meals. Supporters are players who like what the group is doing; nothing is expected of supporters other than that they be civil and constructive if they choose to participate in the group's discussion board.
If you'd like to join the Community Kitchen group, you can request an invitation from any current member or post your request in a comment below.