The pair from Moscow in Russia had been together for more than three years when the man decided to create a digital version of himself and flirt with the women in the game

A furious girlfriend has dumped her fella after catching him “cheating” — in the computer game Sims. A woman named only as Katya called it quits with her long-term boyfriend Max after discovering he’d been spending more time wooing pixelated women than her.

The pair had been together for more than three years, but Max’s obsession with the hit life simulator proved too much. He reportedly created an in-game avatar that looked exactly like him and then started flirting his pants off with virtual ladies.

But when Katya saw his digital double chatting up other characters, she lost it, packed her bags and walked out of their house in Krasnogorsk, near Moscow, Russia.

The Sims is one of the most popular games of all time thanks to its ability to shape people’s lives within the gameplay. With over 200 million copies worldwide being sold across the franchise, it gives players to opportunity to play God.

As part of the game, which celebrated its 25th anniversary this year, players can help to decide everything about what the characters do with each other, as well as shape their personalities.

However, there are fears that the game could be changed drastically after EA Sports, the game’s developer, was recently sold to Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) in a multi-billion dollar deal along.

Elsewhere in Russia, in a bold move the State Duma – the lower house of the Russian parliament – is mulling a new law that would force divorcing couples into psychological counselling to help save their marriage, reports Life.

The proposed bill would make counselling mandatory for anyone filing for divorce. Top mind guru Sergey Lunyushin, a specialist in NLP, hypnotherapy, and cognitive behavioural therapy, said that it was about time.

“This law could save marriages. Sometimes people are at each other’s throats and can’t see a way forward. Even healthy couples can be too proud or scared to ask for help,” Lunyushin said.

He reckoned that seeing a family shrink might stop people from making rash decisions in the heat of a row and could calm the emotional chaos that usually comes with a breakup.

But Lunyushin also issued a warning: not all mediators are up to scratch. He’s calling for tighter training rules to make sure the experts giving advice aren’t just winging it.

Relationship experts say the move could make divorce less nasty and help families avoid turning the kitchen table into a battleground.