I've been semi-hooked on counter-strike for the past few years. I started getting into it again after I got sick, and now some of my long distance high school and college friends jumped on the bandwagon again and we play regularly. Its a great way to stay in touch and socialize, as well as just have fun playing the game. Its also SUPER competitive which has its upsides and downsides. It makes the game dynamic, you constantly need to stay on top of the 'meta' to be good, but at the same time its tiresome, so its not a casual game at higher levels. As with anything, it does come at a real life expense - I have 700 hours on the game, and I need to remind myself when to cut the cord or to take a week off. I usually play 0-2 hrs a day now. Overall, spending a nice weekend outside with friends and family is a lot better than spending it playing video games.