I've been using Vista literally for years, ever since the first preview release of it as "Windows Longhorn" back in 2003. I used it a bit back then, but have been using it fulltime at work since beta 1 came out in 2006, and the company I was working for joined the Microsoft early adopter/beta test program.
I need to give you that background as it could indicate that I've got some bias in favour of Vista. But it does also indicate that I've had a long time to get used to it, and learn about the new features.
I'm a big fan of Vista personally. Yes, it needs more powerful hardware than XP, but it certainly doesn't need anything too the top since, especially if you're a gamer (of pretty much any sort) you'll likely have hardware that is good enough to run it.
Some of the great features in Vista for users could be considered "finishing touches" on XP, I suppose, and perhaps thats where the perception that it's just XP with sugar on top, comes from. Having said that though, here is a quick list of some of the things I think are cool in Vista:
Start menu improvements - scrollable list of programs, rather than XP's crappy, crappy menu system + the start menu search box.
Search in general - it actually
works!
Windows explorer's new "breadcrumb" style address bar. This ROCKS! It's so damn useful!
Gamer centric features - DirectX10, and the Games Explorer. Really shows that MS support gamers (what other OS vendor does the same?)
The improvements made to Task Manager
The reliability and performance monitor
The Aero Glass interface - good looks
do count for something!
Each of these features are things I can't do without now, having had them for years with Vista...
Mark