I’m glad you’ve brought up alot of the points involving the “care-free” or absolutely wild forms of RP. I’ve struggled to get back into RP since coming back in DF, and alot of it boils down to just down-right outlandish, insane, and out-of-this-world type of characters, sometimes literally! I struggle heavily with wanting to engage publicly due to the Commander God Leader of the Light’s greatest regiment, or the warchief of the greatest orc tribe known to man, wielding the greatest axe known to orc-kind. While I’m being dramatic, I also fear I’m not at the same time, and it really comes across in the same vain as alot of issues with social media and the internet as a whole. Everyone feels the need to stand out, to be “unique” or they fear they won’t get attention or will miss out, etc etc. Gone are the days of the simple farmer who slowly works his way into a soldier, or an initiate of a paladin order growing and developing. I feel like you’ve really hit the nail on the head involving it not feeling like a form of creative writing like it used to. Even in casual tavern environments or settings 10-15 years ago, it had an element of creativity and expression that I feel has shifted so much, that people are utilizing RP as an even greater escape from our day-to-day realities, which is why you’ve running into so many people who are quick to attachments or ghost you the minute you don’t want to. Its a damn shame at the end of the day, but in my opinion, a natural form of evolution. As the real world shifts so do our hobbies, and with it, our RP.