Me: "Hm, my friends are always playing Sea of Thieves, let's see what it's all about."
Me: gathers a bunch of quests and stuff, having sort of fun
Also me: gets a phonecall
Sea of Thieves: "Fuck you, Lazybeard, you were away from your computer for more than a minute. Everything is gone, start from scratch."
Me: "... well, fuck you too then. Good job ruining any goodwill I might have had."
Even something as simple as the community group passwords that highlight and prioritize their soapstone messages in Elden Ring makes me feel connected without being tied down.