1) The OP is about the graphics in G3, so that's what I was talking about in the thread. If someone makes a thread about G3's story or skill system, I'll talk about that.
2) Oblivion is the first CRPG I've ever played where the graphics were of such quality that they enhanced my level of enjoyment and immersion in the game. The first non-crpg that did this for me was Farcry. Until then I had always been of the opnion that graphics didn't matter much. But seeing what these new engines can do has caused me to totally change my mind. Graphics are really important now in creating a gameworld, and the engines are becoming more and more integrated into the gameworld and affect how the game is played, not just how it looks.
3)World of Warcarft was what I first though of when I saw the screenies. Not sayign it looks exactly like it, merely that it has a cartoony look. Not as bad as Wow of course, which is cartoon city stylistically. Cartoony was OK for XCOM and MOO and Duke 3D, but I'm not big on it in my games anymore.