Addicted, no. I play more games than Sims, but it is one of my top time consumers in the entertainment genre. I tend to play games in general rather irregularly. I can play for long periods and be quite happy, but when I am busy games are one of the first things cut from my time.
As for the general negatives, I would say no. I mean, nothing could ever be as perfect as your own little sandbox, certainly not the real world. I have used games as a means of escape for things like mourning and stress from such, but my problem is that I do not have so much fun in those situations and it is frustratingly apparent to me even then. It is only a pure distraction, if it can even live up to that. Anyway, my situation was more a matter of allowing time to heal my wounds.
I have never personally struggled with video game addition, however I do have a bit of experience living with an addict. This person was not happy with themselves and their life and wanted to drown it in every way possible, getting worse and worse with time and adding new addictions to the old when they no longer distracted and satisfied. Instead of trying to develop new, good habits and cutting ties with old habits, they wallowed in them until they ended up in a very dark place. This person is still there now.
What I would suggest is to do what they could not and create those new habits. No video game is worth detrimentally affecting your life and if it only harms you, it is best to let it go. I am sure there will be plenty of support to be found. I wish you the best of luck.
