There’s a gaming meme that makes the rounds online whose punchline is, “I went outside today for a change. The graphics were amazing but the story and gameplay were terrible.”

Gameplay is King, and it’s always been that way. Some game developers get that, some don’t.

My current addiction when I need mindless, almost meditative downtime is Banana Kong on my iPad. And when I say “addiction” I’m only half kidding.

I’ve long since unlocked all the achievements, and fulfilled all the missions. Yet, I’m still compulsively playing it, and I’m still enjoying it.

Why? Because even without any achievements to chase it’s still fun. It’s simple, but fun.

It’s fun in part because it harkens back to my youth in the 80s playing Run ‘n Jump games very much like Banana Kong.

But beyond nostalgia the most entertaining video games, from Mario to Sonic to Angry Birds have always had simple controls and straightforward gameplay.

That doesn’t mean that they weren’t challenging and sometimes frustrating. Simple does not equate to easy. In fact, often it’s those challenges at frustrations that keep us playing, to get to that next checkpoint or that next achievement.

But more importantly, simple is still the most fun.

Never forget that, game makers.