The UK’s first rehab clinic for cases of gaming addiction has been officially opened in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.

Therapists say a surge in popularity of web-based “fantasy world” games has created a wave of addiction in children and adults, and the clinic are now opening their doors to gaming addicts to join those hooked on drink, drugs and gambling – such as online casino.

The clinic will be rolling out a gaming rehabilitation scheme developed in the US, called the Minnesota Method Twelve-Step Abstinence programme. Sounds far less exciting than Call Of Duty and Fifa 10, to be honest.

The rehab centre’s CEO, Brian Dudley, said: ”Obviously this is the very early stages of researching how many youngsters are affected. But I would stick my neck out and say between five and 10% of parents or partners would say they know of someone addicted to online games.

“You can’t simply say to a 23-year-old male ‘you should never use the internet again’. It’s just not practical. So we go through all the issues surrounding gaming use and ensure there are triggers through which an addict recognises their usage has become a problem.”

Swedish charity the Youth Care Foundation also recently claimed that World Of Warcraft is the “crack cocaine of the computer world” after a 15-year-old boy went into convulsions following a lengthy session playing the game.

I don’t know about you but I feel like convulsing when hit by that smell inside new cars; and yet you don’t see anyone complaining about that?

All of the online casino games, football games, and online gaming make me happy, so they can shove that in their crack cocaine pipe and smoke it.

They tried to make me go to games rehab and I said ‘No, no, no!’….