Gaming is actually a really good way to meet people. I know tons of people who have made lasting friendships with their online gaming groups or tabletop RPG groups.
Tabletop roleplaying especially is a great way to make friends at any age, as it tends to involve meeting regularly and through gaming you actually learn quite a bit more about the people you play with than in most other ways of socializing. Older players pretty much always treat newbies well, so you don't really have to worry about that. There's usually some online communities where you can ask around for gaming groups.
Meeting people and making new friends is actually one of the main things that these days attracts me to roleplaying.
Online RPG's also create longlasting friendships, but also tabletop games in general. Especially if you're the kind of person who buys the new games and brings snacks, you're off to a good start.
I find it funny that the stereotype of a gamer is kind of a loner, when most lifelong gamers I know these days complain they have more friends than they can keep up with.
From what I've heard, poker players are also often ready to take in a sucker who's a good loser
There's a reason gaming has been a thing for thousands of years, and it's not just gambling. It's a really easy way to meet people, and works just fine even for people who aren't that great at mingling in general, because there's you can just focus on the game when there's nothing to talk about.