GameSpy's Most Wanted Games of 2004, Part One

GameSpy has begun a new feature in which they count down the top 40 games they're looking forward to in 2004. In the first installment, they reveal #40 through #33, which includes the MMORPGs Ultima X: Odyssey and City of Heroes. A snippet:
Ultima X will pick up right where Ultima IX left off and brings back something that many old-school Ultima fans were missing in UO, the eight virtues and the sense of development as a character. The eight virtues of Britannian society are humility, honesty, compassion, valor, justice, sacrifice, honor, and spirituality, and everything the player does will be judged according to those criteria.

Demonstrating the characteristics of one of the virtues during a quest gives "virtue points" that can be used to enhance a player's abilities or items. That's right, the simple shield you begin the game with may eventually become a mighty "Shield of Honor" and have its own look and powers. In one stroke Ultima X may have solved the "random loot" problem and brought back real character development. Now your gear will be as individual as you are!