Exactly. And even when you do have folks there who just want to watch but don’t want to play, I think most groups don’t really treat entertaining that person as a priority.
Or maybe they just realize that the show comes across as more honest an relatable because they
don't prioritize entertaining other people. We have no way of knowing, if they even know themselves.
I have no clue what their priorities are. Neither does anyone else that is not on the cast. I also don't see why it matters. When I play I usually try to make decisions more-or-less based on my PC, but sometimes I'm just motivated by saying something funny, or playing off of current events. I have many nebulous motivations for doing what I do, it's not like I have internal
I don't watch the "after shows" very often, but I did catch the one after Fjord threw his sword away because it was on auto play and I was busy. When talking about it, Travis said something along the lines of "I was kind of surprised by the decision, but it was what Fjord would do". Not "what was more entertaining", not "what the audience wanted" but what his PC would do. Is this the standard for how he decides what to say or do? Heck if I know. I just know that at one pivotal moment, unless he was lying, his motivation was what would Fjord do.
So unless there's actual quotes from the cast, I have no reason to believe (or care for that matter) their primary motivation isn't just to play a game while keeping in mind that it will be watched and we have no idea how much that affects them. I wouldn't be surprised if even they don't really know. But again, I don't see why it matters. Similar conversations, plots, character development happen in my home game.
Unlike (for example) the CSI TV show which only has the barest correlation to reality, to me, CR feels like a real game. People have many motivations for playing the game or many other things we do. I would assume that for most people the reason they play the game is a messy amalgam of reasons and there isn't a neat categorizations. I will say that they are either some of the most amazing actors ever or they truly enjoy each other's company and what they're doing. I don't think their priorities change that, or matter.