This might sound retarded but I wish EA would get Lion Head Studios in on some of the coding here.
If you have to ask why Lion Head you probably dont know who Peter Molyneux is ..
Well he was the head honcho over at bull frog back in the day.
I have no doubt that if he had a hand in this , it would be true to the original and be really great fun.
Peter did his magic in the below games , and i wish EA would have paid for his input in this one..

Pre-Bullfrog
The Entrepreneur (1984) (designer/programmer)
Druid 2

Bullfrog Productions
Fusion (1987) (designer/programmer)
Populous (1989) (designer/programmer)
Powermonger (1990) (designer/programmer)
Populous II: Trials of the Olympian Gods (1991) (designer/programmer)
Syndicate (1993) (producer)
Theme Park (1994) (project leader/lead programmer)
Magic Carpet (1994) (executive producer)
Hi-Octane (1995) (executive producer)
Genewars (1996)
Dungeon Keeper (1997) (project leader/designer)

Lionhead Studios
Black & White (2001) (concept/lead designer/programmer)
Fable (2004) (designer)
Fable: The Lost Chapters (2005) (designer)
The Movies (2005) (executive designer)
Black & White 2 (2005) (lead designer)
The Movies: Stunts & Effects (2006) (executive designer)
Black & White 2: Battle of the Gods (2006) (lead designer)
Fable II (2008) (lead designer)
Fable III (2010) (lead designer)
Milo and Kate (formerly known as The Dmitri Project) (cancelled) (lead designer)
Fable: The Journey (TBA)