The first time you smoke a cigarette you are likely to get a bit of a buzz or head rush. After you've smoked a while that feeling goes away but everything else gets worse. What you get instead is the withdrawal if you don't keep taking in the nicotine. It's not the same feeling as alcohol withdrawal but it is absolutely not pleasant.
I consider it the same as the days when I was drinking. You start drinking or smoking because it brings you pleasure, but by the time you are addicted it's torture and you just keep doing it to postpone the withdrawals. The pleasure disappears but the withdrawals keep pulling you back in.
FWIW I had a much harder time quitting drinking than I did smoking but I've heard plenty of people say the exact opposite. Either way it is not easy.