The games I played: Just one more level

There hasn't been a gaming console in the house since I got married, and that's worked out well for all concerned. I get sucked into games too much, and since becoming a grown-up I really don't have the time to spare.

I know how much time they eat up because of the games I would play when there weren't so many adult responsibilities and you could play all night long, right through till dawn. The days of the first PlayStation.

If I ever needed to stay awake, I could play a video game, because I never get tired while getting lost in the vast strategies of the various Command and Conquer games, or jiving to the fast pace of dumb shoot 'em ups like Doom, Loaded and Exhumed.

I could just keep going. I remember staying up till five in the morning on one of the very first Tomb Raiders, because I kept getting stuck on one level involving some kind of huge theatre, took so long to get through.

I remember coming home from the pub and slamming some Resident Evil, getting some water into me and detoxing, while getting really good at backing away from the fleshcrawling dead.

I haven't stayed up that late in a long, long time now and am getting increasingly grateful for any sleep I can get. But those endless nights in the glow of the Playstation thrills felt like they went on forever.