Recursive fakes not only make tests shorter and readable. They can also make your tests more robust.

Ever had a test break because you change internal implementation? That's because your test knew "too much" about the internal structure of your application. With more setup specification for the tests, the chances that the test will break because of internal change are bigger.

Recursive fakes absolve you of that problem. Because you specify just the top level object to fake, you don't specify the rest of the tree structure. And because you just specify what's needed for the test, and nothing else, everything that may change outside this context does not affect your test.

Effectively, your tests will break only when they have a real reason to: a bug or a requirement change.

Tests should accompany the application for a long time. Recursive fakes, along with other Isolatormaintainability features help your tests live longer.