Thoughts on diet soda when doing a calorie deficit?

Hi guys, I’ve decided I want to try to lose 60 pounds so I’ve changed my diet and am eating around 1800 calories a day. Starting weight: 215lbs, down 5 pounds already. I have a horrible sweet tooth, particularly for sour candy and pop, and tonight I decided to try a zero sugar doctor pepper and it was fantastic. Is aspartame bad for weight loss? I feel like I experienced relief this afternoon when I realized I loved the taste but is it too good to be true? I know I can google this as well but I’ve heard so many mixed opinions throughout the last ten years so I wanted to ask this group.