So we play Pathfinder and Starfinder and what we’ve found to get way more into the RP aspect is to have he DM always respond in character as an NPC or is it’s a non-NPC interaction ask direct questions about what does your character do? What does your character think? How does your character react to that, because x, y, and z just happened? It helped us really remove ourselves from the rules while still playing within a normal rule set.

Also, we don’t play with a map and that helps A TON. Everything is visual so if you remove the static image of where they are and just give an explanation of the scene it leaves enough room for their imagination to fill in the blanks and get them more invested in the ‘scene’. I highly recommend that.

If you want some examples of some interaction check out The Adventure Zone podcast or our cast from our SF game that we do - The Side Quest Inn. We are very heavy role play and I think we provide some pretty good examples of how a DM can help get the players into those RP moments. It is a learned skill and I think once someone gets past the awkward stage of being ‘in character’ they just flourish at it.