Well, it’s been Diablo Days here in Modstomp Headquarters. We spent much of the MLK weekend pumping up our new chars, a druid, a necro, and a bowazon, and still got some time in with our more seasoned characters.

What’s amazing is that this game is taking more of our interest than many of the newer games, in spite of its 800×600 resolution. What is it about the Diablo formula that makes it so darn fun, and why aren’t newer games as fun for us? Are we becoming old codgers, reliving the good old days, or is there something missing in the gameplay that flashy graphics aren’t covering up? Fact remains that there are few games that are six years old that are still on shelves at many computer stores (and cost more than $9.99).

I recently went on a tear with the original X-Com; it was swallowing whole chunks of time, and my friends and family were befuddled. It’s even more dated than Diablo II, but still just as fun and interesting as when I first played those many years ago.

It’s refreshing to see a lot of focus in the gaming industry on re-inventing what makes games fun. OK, so only Nintendo is really thinking about it, but that’s a start. I’d love to see more game houses take an interest in why these old formulas have such staying power. With the whole HD graphics and next-gen phenomenon, let’s not forget what makes games fun.