Let me tell you right at the start, I hate gaming places. I hate slot machines. And I abhor digital on-screen games that have flashy lights and virtual racing. I also know that my kids, who I have brought up on a diet of the outdoors, trekking, walking and playing freely, salivate when I merely mention the word, “gaming”.

So knowing how excited they would be, I gather my two kids with a sense of resignation and head to the newly relaunched Timezone in Inorbit Mall, Malad, rechristened Next Gen Timezone (NGTZ). Little do I realise that I would be the one who would have to be torn away from the gaming machines there. Argh. Just proves my point that these machines that feed you with adrenaline are indeed addictive.