You make some good points, Rob, but I haven't had the type of experiences you're talking about. When my friend Max started to play, we both made several characters and only played "our two" while we were both online (at least, that's how it was supposed to work). I guess it depends on how you want to work, but it'd definitely be possible to have a few friends and only play for a few hours every weekend, for instance. You can always make other characters for soloing or whatever.

I think you will end up investing as much time in this as you want. If you're having a blast, naturally you'll want to do it more, and shouldn't regret it. I tried to debunk the "lost time" attitude in my interview with that radio show. It's not like if you weren't playing that game, you'd be doing something "worthwhile," like tending the garden or searching for a cure for cancer. Besides that, if the game really engages you, that means it's a good game, not that you're a bad or lazy person.

A true "addict" is someone who starts missing work or classes to do something. For instance, a drug addict will be unable to hold down a job because he'll either miss work, show up unable to do the job, endanger other people, etc. I can't believe anyone would compare a real addict, like a crack addict, to someone who enjoys videogames. Indeed, the two are opposite--the gamer will probably be more likely to avoid drinking and drugs because then he'll be unable to play!

In any case, I'd never believe someone who said they didn't do X *because* of a game. Nonsense. If you wanted to do X you'd have done it. You're just using the game as a lame excuse. No game I know can force you to play if you don't want to. If you hate spending time with your family, for instance, the game becomes a convenient excuse, not a cause.