How to help players?

So... a few days ago, I had a scene where a character was talking about jumping. Without going into any details, as is often the case, the player felt that they could not progress and the world was against them. (Which in some cases it is)

We ended up talking in OOC a fair bit about how to approach the game when things just go to drek. But as I thought about it, I figured maybe it would be good to start up a thread here to solicit ideas on how to approach the game and how to help people who are struggling to get what they want out of the game.

Here are my tips in general:

1) Take RL breaks from the game.

If you are a high time player (IE You can be on the game for hours a day in general), don't be afraid to take a day off. Yes, you'll miss something. Yes, you won't get those UE, but everyone needs some time now and again and taking time to decompress is often really important.

2) Don't play if it's not fun.

This is pretty simple. If you're not having fun. Stop. It's harder in practice, but in reality, it's probably the best thing you can do. Take a break. Make a vacation character if you can. Just walk away until you feel like you really miss things.

3) It's probably not personal.

There are some really nasty things that happen to people that would rarely happen in RL. Whether it's public mocking on SIC, being shunned, having people plot to kill/steal/whatever you... is part of the game. Don't take it personally and assume that the people you are interacting with are giving you time and effort which is a compliment of sorts.

4) It's okay to play a low conflict character... but...

GMs have reinforced that playing the game the way that you want too is acceptable. If you want to be a social butterfly, it's okay. You don't have to be a mover or shaker to have fun. BUT. Other people are and you will likely be caught up in some of their schemes or conflict or derision. Again, remember point #3.

5) Only play when you can actually play.

We've all been there... started a scene and real life boils over. I'm not talking about this in those cases. However, because we want to be in the world when things happen we often end up idling and not able to interact with people. That can have huge ramifications. GMs puppet people when they see your SIC online. If you are taking minutes to reply to people they will avoid you. Make your time focused even if you have to cut back your time.

I'm sure there are more, but hopefully this can get the ball rolling from people who have more experience than I do.

Agreed, it's very much not personal. I care deeply for the people behind the screen, and I'm always there for you if you need to talk OOC.

The world of Sindome is intended to be harsh on the characters, not the players. We're all here to have pretendy fun times in abysmal conditions, and there are even various different degrees of abyss to situate your character.

Still, that's not everyone's cup of tea. Sometimes people leave because it isn't want they want, and that's okay too. But often, someone can have a ton more fun by pivoting to a new career or sector.

Plenty of people have said that they prefer corporate play because of the more high-brow nature of it, while others find it stifling to their creativity. Many others love the fast times of mixer play, while others hate dying all the time.

If you love roleplaying the struggle of living in a cyberpunk dystopia, there's a place in Sindome for you.