A strong non-linear story and a well-defined, believable game-world (including the locations, individual characters and society) are the most important to me. These are also the strongest features of TW1 which make it my all-time favourite game.Then come the actual game mechanics (combat, stealth, etc.). In the statistics-based / skill-based discussion I personally prefer more of a skill-based system, simply because I feel more of a sense of accomplishment if I used my own skills to defeat an opponent rather than the character's stats. That said, there is no way to control all the degrees of freedom a swordfighter has to deal with using just a mouse&keyboard or a console controller - so any combat system will need to rely on statistics as well. Good balancing is crucial this department.I would definitely like to see mod support and a PC-friendly UI, but I can do without if I must.Graphics come last though they can certainly help create a more believable atmosphere.
