Well, yes, but I think flatness is important too, especially at low pressures. A somewhat separate yet illuminating issue is the following : Until well into the twentieth century, there was still some argument about what causes friction. Was it caused perhaps by rough interlocking surfaces leading to energy loss because of induced microscopic motion in the normal direction, or was it just interatomic force ? If it were due to interatomic force, the argument went, why was there no noticeable force of attraction in the normal direction between the two surfaces in question ? Well, it turns out that there is a normal force of attraction, but you don't usually notice it because when you separate the two surfaces, the force drops almost to zero at the instant that the surfaces truly separate. The force of attraction is dependent on the actual surface area in contact, which is a very small percentage of the apparent contact area, and is actually a collection of very small lands whose area drops to zero as the surfaces are pulled apart. But if you can make the lands large enough, the force does not drop off as much and the parts stay stuck together, as with gage blocks.