Just played the tutorial, here are my thoughts:

Interface takes a bit to get used too, but after a few minutes it was fine.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the way the cavalry rides down infantry. Far more realistic than MTW. In fact, it had me thinking I wish I could do a medieval mod for RTW-- I'd love to see some Teutonic Knights charge into some Ghazis with the new physics. Well done, CA.

Had a cool little moment when the barbarians were coming over the bridge: my Triarii spotted them and all turned their spears towards the enemy. Fantastic.

I'll try the Battle tonight. But first impressions are, pretty darn good. The gameplay is not really very different from MTW, but the graphics and sound are better, and everything is new. yaay.