So I got a hold of some PDFs of the upcoming 4e rulebooks (Yes they are likely 'illegal' no I was not the one who found them, YES I still plan on paying cash for the REAL things, as them DM I like having a copy on my PC and if I can get a week ahead of time to read the books all the better).
So, with my quick perusal what can I say about the new game?
I like it. It looks a lot cleaner, and looks a lot smoother to play. As an example, Wizards (my favorite character), has everything needed to play a Wizard PC in the Wizard section of the Player's Book.
Example: All Wizard spells, special abilities, etc is in the wizard section. Also, now the spells (either a daily or encounter 'power') are listed as to the level you need to be to cast it, not the level of the spell. Example, Fireball in previous editions was a Level 3 spell that you needed to be level 5 to cast. very difficult at time to remember all that. In the new game Fireball is now a Level 5 power (meaning you get it at level 5, pretty nifty eh?).
The game also now allows for PCs to play towards a goal (example being Demigodhood at level 31). This does not mean at level 31 you now are a god and continue to play. Nope, quite the contrary. Your character achieves your ultimate goal, and is then retired from play.
Classes are better balanced against each other, and each class has a couple of different roles assigned to the them. Example: A character is either a Controller, Artillery, Soldier etc. This means (again the wizard), is best as either a controller or Artillery. A controller means that have abilities to control the battlefield and opponents, throwing up Flaming walls, moving your opponents, holding opponents in place etc. Or they could be artillery, throwing massive damage around etc.
On the DM's side, one of the best additions to the game is the Minion ability. Some monsters have assiting monsters called minions. Minions are almost as strong as the main monsters but with one slight change: They only have 1 HP. You read that right a Level 13 Minion has only a single HP You hit them, and they die. But, as a minion, they take no damage on a missed attack (so abilites that do X damage on a miss have no effect on minions). This means you can now have those grand cinematic battles where the PCs are fighting the Zombie lord (as an example) and his undead horde. The undead horde is a real threat, but the PCs can cut through like a hot knife trough butter.
Very cool.
There are lost more I can say about the game, but all I can say, is I am going to be a very very giddy little boy come Friday when I plunk down my big bucks (I still have no idea what the cost will be to me, but I suspect something like $100) and get my in the 'flesh' (so to speak) books for real.
So much love!