One of the exceptions to my rule about no video games has been: "I can play video games so long as I'm playing with a friend who is physically in the same room as me, who is not also my spouse, and who gets equal or greater than equal time playing."  For the first time since going sober, I exercised this little right of mine.  My stepbrother and I played a little bit a of a game demo I got well before I gave up games.  He, his family, and my father were over at my house with my wife and I to celebrate my birthday a little early last night. We didn't get to play all that long at all, maybe 30 minutes total, and I must say, I was sorely tempted to keep playing after everyone had gone.  It really was like I think it is for an alcoholic.  One taste and all those behaviors and automatic desires kick right in and he wants the whole bottle.  In my case, I wanted to play the demo over and over, master it, play until I was dead tired or bored of it (which could have taken several hours).  I also wouldn't have minded going for a little spin in all the games that I used to play constantly before quitting.  I was able to resist the temptation, but all this tells me that I may, in fact, have to give games up entirely and indefinitely.  We'll give this "social gaming" a few more tries before I decide whether it really just serves to be a strong form of temptation in my life or if it is a level of moderation that I can achieve.