I live where no tabletop has ever been played, thus I had to search elsewhere for some games, namely the Internet. I've spent a lot of time browsing the web but the best communities I could find were filled with young, Anime-obsessed fellows. 

I am looking for a serious, immersive game, but I know nobody and I don't know where to find players. Do you know any good IRC networks/channels for roleplayers? I am totally clueless as to where I should get started, my experience with RPGs is extremely limited and the sea of web pages I've visited aren't helping. I refuse to believe that the Internet isn't some kind of gateway for RPG players from all over the world so please, can someone help me out?

Additionally, if you know some good play by post communities, you might as well tell me. I've read other answers (like [How can I find PBP games?](https://rpg.stackexchange.com/questions/2877/how-can-i-find-pbp-games) - now deleted, 10k rep only) but I'd like to hear from someone with some experience on those sites rather than just a list of names.