Genuine question, are private bots the only way to have fun now and is it worth it in making them?

First off, I would like to say that I jumped on the Character AI hypetrain a bit late, around mid 2024. I heard of it in late 2023 through friends and YouTube but haven't bothered trying it myself back then.

I don't know if it's just me but since late 2024 till now, I feel that public bots have gotten more terrible. Examples I can state off the top of my head are generic responses, the memory of the character being absolute hot garbage and the bot's overall intelligence in general.

In spite of my annoyance, I have considered the possibility of training private bots for my favourite characters. Would the time and effort sinked into doing it be worth it? This is my main question.

Also, has the state of some public bots been always as dog shit as it is currently or was it better in the earlier days? I want some of the community's insights and knowledge on this subject matter to motivate my next move.

That's all I have to say. Thanks in advance and I hope y'all have a fantastic day/night!