Recently got an IMC rating and really enjoyed the training. That's not to say that there weren't times when I felt my head was about to explode with the workload and I had no idea where I was, where I was going or what I was supposed to be doing. But it eventually came together.
Since then I've done a bit of practice IMC (with safety pilot) in marginal VMC but not yet used it in anger. But my flying has improved no end - I hold altitude, speed and heading so much better than before and that has to make for better and safer flying.
I'd intended to do the rating for a while, but it was after a particularly unpleasant experience with the weather coming down in the Vale of York, just on the border of the North York Moors that I resolved to get the rating. We got away with it that time by having a co-pilot who'd done the IMC course (but not yet taken the test) and the next time might not have done. I'm now confident that in similar circumstances (subject to keeping current) I'll stand a good chance of flying another day.
So far as FS2002 is concerned, whilst it doesn't feel anything like real blind flying, I found it a great help in the course. You can reduce the workload on instrument approaches significantly by being familiar with the profile, and FS enables you to fly your local instrument approaches as often as you like until familiar with them - a great help when you do the real thing. Don't try to fly real IMC purely on the back of FS though!