HomeLan Fed Exclusives Ultima X Odyssey Preview offer their hands-on impressions of the upcoming MMORPG based on checking it out at the recent press unveiling. Here's a bit:

So what about the combat? The dev team of Ultima X wanted to avoid what they called “ sandwich combat”, i.e. you encounter an enemy in another MMORPG, begin your combat then leave the computer to get a sandwich and return to see your character finally defeat your enemy. Based on our playtest of the game, Ultima X’s gameplay will not feel like that at all. Our combat felt more like a real time conflict with the ability to use special attacks at will rather than wait for your turn to begin. The combat system really makes you feel like a participant in the game.