I played 1e a few months back with my high school gaming group, running through Expedition to the Barrier Peaks until I got randomly killed by a no-saving-throw death trap. It was really fun, but I missed some of the tactical richness from later editions. Due to the module, I really missed the lack of any NPCs to roleplay with. And I DEFINITELY didn't miss insta-kill death traps!
Stupid death trap.
I don't think nostalgia plays a huge role in my gaming, other than always trying to catch that sense of "this is so frikkin' cool!" that comes with a new game. I like some of modern RPG advancements too much to give them up on a long-term basis.