To me code needs to help tell the story, bring people together, or otherwise get out of the way of RP. Sometimes code is necessary, depending on the system, for being an impartial mediator for combat for example or for other contests. I have played super code heavy games like ATS, and while it can be fun, it also takes away from RP.
The heavy code emphasis made it so you could play the whole game while rarely seeing another person face to face. You could trade, or you could hunt pirates, or various npc ships, etc. Face to faces were exceedingly rare and that level of code stymied the RP.
Back in the day though I had some fabulous RP there, now, not so much.