I like the new dice mechanics.
The very streamlined "game engine".
I like the "new" setting philosophy wich is darker and more gritty (especialy the german sourcebooks).

And, of course, Ingram Smartgun.

I like the lesbian elven chicks and surged catgirls...*

Runners Havens, YYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!!!

It was a fun book to read with tons of plot devices. Very discriptive, great artwork and easy enough to tie in with Loose Alliances and other SR3 books without compromising everything you want. Good Ol' Seattle

Unified Essence/Bio Index rules... YAY!
Static Target Number.... YAY!
Single Axis Damage Codes... YAY!

Really, that speeds up play so much that the game could require me to call time in the middle of every session and do some calculus and I'd still be ahead.

-Frank

Active defense against ranged attacks... YAY!!!!!
WiFi... YAY!!!
Streamlined rules... YAY!!!
Chepaer cyber- and bioware.. YAY!!!

Still working on comprehending it all, will get back to this later.

Wireless matrix, Augmented Reality, and skinlinked devices: Yay!
(I'd been toying around with houserules for these since back when FASA was just starting to put out 3rd edition. It's nice to have official support for these concepts.)

System Failure - Proving once again that game developers can safely get away with anything if they just make the plot book good.

The complex and well thought out game world is what really makes me actually play Shadowrun rather than some other RPG. If I could chose my RPGs on game rules alone, I'd be playing Deadlands more, but the game world is less familiar and therefore harder to visualize.

The obvious amount of playtesting and thought that has gone into all of the products so far. YAAAY!
The production values, polish and more professional artwork. YAAAY!
Runner Havens' excellent writing and depth and plot springboards. YAAAY and YAAY!
The return to dark atmosphere - organ legging, bunraku, crime, corruption and the malevolent rich. YAAY, YAAY and YAAAAAAY!

Also the easy death that can come to even the most powerful characters making intelligence, preparation and cunning so much more important than in certain other role-playing games. YAAAY!

Unified Magic System YAAAAAY
Rigger Rules that don't' require a degree in theoretical mathematics YAAAAY
Technomancers YAAAAAY
Lack of Eathdawn references YAAAAAY
Streamlined combat mechanics YAAAAY
Grit YAAAAY
Less anime feel YAAAAY
Quick character cration YAAAAY

I could go on, I love SR4

Streamlined rules. YAAAY!
Kept the rich history and background. YAAAY!
No SURGE. YAAAY! (for now)
Constant mechanics. YAAAY!

Now if only they would make a Clix game, that way we could have minis and a quick boardgame (a la DMZ) too!

Ronin, DON'T JINX IT! Need we remind you of the failure that was Shadowrun Duels?

...

Wow.

Streamlined mechanics, obviously.
(With unified magic system.) YAY!!!

Wireless Matrix. YAY!!!

Pretty much all of Street Magic (although I'm not done reading it yet). YAY!!!

Skill Groups! YAY!!! :D:D


Not specifically 4th edition:

Ghostwalker!

SURGE!!! (I gave Chronic Osteocuspus to a troll sammy - who's been exposed to some heavy magic stuff earlier in his background story - to turn this previously dangerous, yet life-loving - his own, anyways - killing machine into something much, much darker, spiritually broken and twisted. The big, scary troll sammy became something that hurts to even look at. :D:D I'll have to post a full description with background and stats one of these days.)

ED connections (although I wish a whole SR book came out on precisly that, since I don't have any ED books myself and don't really want to buy them all simply to add some fluff to my SR games).

YAY! YAY! YAY! :D

The coolest setting this side of the 'verse: YAY!

Orks, trolls, and even dwarves and elves. With guns. Yay!

Magic, Decking, Guns, Sneaking, Johnsons, Fixers, Drugs, Chummers and Stuffer Shacks: Yay!

Handfuls of dice, baby: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!

Adepts: YA-FRICKIN'-HOO!

SR4 :

Unified magic rules. Everyone else says it, but I need to say it. YAAAAYYY!

Wifi is pretty cool, YAAYY!

Combat that doesn't take all night to run. YAAAYYY!

And of course, as a pirate, my favorite addition to the Shadowrun game should be obvious.


About shadowrun in general:

Shadowtalk. Hands down the best thing about Shadowrun books is the shadowtalk. I buy the background books to read the shadowtalk. If it wasn't for those dedicated vandalizing hackers, I probably would have abandoned SR a long time ago. Also, I think that Wikipedia needs to Own up and say they got the Idea from Shadowland.

BP and Karma cost inconsistencies. YAY!

Cost of attributes to skills and skill groups. YAY!

Positive Qualities and Negative Qualities. YAY!

Glitches.. each and everytime they happen, I love them.

Obviously, I hate Edge, which can cancel those beautiful glitches.

Suck that.

This website and all the great source material in the ancheint files! WWWWWWWOOOOOOO-HHHHHHOOOOO!!!

character generation rules are much more flexible. Contacts (which can be bought with varying degrees of usefulness and loyalty) and spells are bought separately from resources now. Resources themselves are now bought in 5,000 Nuyen increments.

I like the Edge Attribute, which is more balanced than the old Karma Pool, and can be used in a wider variety of ways.

I like some of the other rules changes, such as fixed TNs, the skill plus Attribute mechanic, how armor works, and a few other things.

I like skill groups. I also like how the old skills have been compressed (longarms for both rifles and shotguns, interrogation as a specialization of intimidation) or expanded (stealth and athletics broken into their component skills), as needed.

I like the introduction of commlinks and a wireless world. I also like the changes in cyberware's cost, Essense reduction, and overall functionality.

What I really like about the SR4 main book, as opposed to the SR3 main book, is that it gives you enough of everything that you need to begin play. You have positive and negative qualities, bioware, initiation, submersion, a good selection of adept powers, spells, and foci, the most commonly encountered critters, and a selection of gear that includes B&E, communications, disguise, rules for armor enhancement, and so on.

...I have to concur on the Skill Groups and Edge Attribute, initiation & contacts

I miss the more generalised skills back in 1st & 2nd ed (as well as the old Skill Web 3rd ed, while it cleaned some things up, made skills somewhat too specific.

In our "one shot" sessions, I have really come to like the Edge attribute more than the old Karma pool. Yeah it caps, but I think it is way more useful since it can be used for more than just rerolling failures or permanently burning for a butt saving H.O.G.

The fact that they included Initiation into the BBB is also a big improvement.

The contact loyalty/connection scale is also a nice addition, Using BPs as opposed to resources is a much better way to buy them. Man, you can have a freund for life who will do anything (short of maybe stopping a bullet for you) at chargen if you want to pay the BPs.

Character generation rules that allow someone to dabble in magic.

Updating the technology to account for what's been developed since Shadowrun was originally created.

Yaayy Background.

Continuation/ressurection of old plot threads/threats. I love it when something old but useful is given new life. Gives me a better sense of continuity. YAY!

Thirded.