people left because the server is ass lol. there's almost no players, the ones that are there aren't particularly good roleplayers, the script is bad and barebones in most spots, and there's almost no factions. The server wasn't even up half the time, there was barely even any CLOTHING which is the most basic feature you can expect from an RP server in 2023. it's completely unfinished.
i wanted to rp a cab driver and spent 2 hours driving around with no fares. the only thing that happened was bored cops pulling me over because i did a rolling stop at intersections on empty streets. During one of them at one point thankfully somebody shot a gun in davis and the cop went running. unless I waste hours of my time doing some inane script job I would never have money for my own car (not having a car was bad enough on a much smaller map with higher running speed on SAMP, not having it on V is basically torture) let alone my own cab.
there's no reason to play LSRP over the competition, that's the cold and hard fact and anybody with a brain saw this coming a year and a half ago. What you're seeing now is whoever has any power (people that are high ranking in official facs, mods, devs, etc etc) staying until it inevitably shuts down because they know they aren't getting anything similar in any of the other communities while normal players have an exodus