When sleeping becomes a game

Some count sheep to fall asleep, I play games.

I usually take my Nintendo DS Lite and mobile phones to bed so I could play any game I like until I get sleepy. The games I play vary from something that don't require much brain such as blowing up similar bubbles or jems and stacking up condo floors, to something that can be so cerebral it hurts such as Scrabble for masters and Sudoku in evil level.

It seems counter productive, I know, because while my eyes and hands get tired from playing, my brain, on the other hand, becomes wide awake. However, the satisfaction of finishing a very challenging level is so relaxing that it's guaranteed to soon put me to sleep...happy.

But puzzles and board games or even the whodunnits genre are not my undoing. It's the heart-pumping adventure games that can make or break my sleep. Zelda and Lara Croft for the DS are two adventure games that have stolen lots of sleeping hours from me. Diner Dash, though not really a game of adventure in the full sense of the word, also got me so hooked until I've become master in all levels. Something about the game's strict requirement for methodical execution (read: OC) to reach the goal appealed to me immensely. From there it was easy for me to get addicted on other Dash games by Playfirst. However, because most Dash games only run on notebook PC which I don't want to use in bed, they don't count as my sleeping aids.

Then came along Guitar Hero on Tour for DS. It's been around for sometime but I only got my own set a couple of months ago. By no stretch of the imagination can I be a rock star so, for me, a game like this is quite amusing to say the least.


I own a real guitar but it's more a symbol of my dilettant nature than anything for I learned to play only few and simple pieces. If only playing the guitar is as easy as typing or hitting few button keys...like in Guitar Hero for DS!

Ha ha, now I can play numbers by Smash Mouth, Nirvana, Rick Springfield, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stray Cats, The Doobie Brothers, etc. Talk about shortcuts. Although it can never replace real guitar playing, Guitar Hero on Tour for DS lets me kid myself. In other words, it's as real as it could get for non-musicians like me and I can pretend to be a rock star in the privacy and comfort of my bedroom at night where I can shout "ROCK ON!!!" to raise my score.

But as with a real guitar, my pinky struggles to reach certain guitar strings, which would be the blue button in the case of the Guitar Hero. Otherwise, I find the Guitar Hero on Tour for DS a very nice product, from the packaging to the careful inclusion of accessories that include a guitar pick, a hand grip and some cool stickers.

Now how's that for some "rock-a-bye baby" before I sleep? :)