I personally LOVE 4th Edition. I really like the tactical aspect it now brings to the fights, and the fact that they have "fixed" magic users, that, I felt, in previous editions, only stood back most of the game just to unleash their full fury in just a few rounds...
Anyway, I agree with what have been stated here, that 4th Edition, being more tactical, tend to favour more spaced combats, especially considering how many of the powers have to do with movements in some way...
Another thing I thought the DMG was quite insistent about is to make each encounter as memorable as possible.
For example, here, for illustration purpose, is a quick map I quickly produced to illustrate my point (please, pay no attention to how ugly and quickly thrown together it is):
Here, the players arrive to some kind of foundry. A river of lava is detourned to heat up large metal bowl, in order to make metal that is then cast into some molds...
Maybe the players were investigating some kind of weapon trafick, maybe the foundry is on another plane, or "just" on the flank of a volcanoe...
Anyway, when the players arrive, the rain start falling, hissing as it meets the lava, clouding the surround in a light mist. If the players get too close from the casting, the creatures working them, violently empty the bowls of burning metal into the channels, splashing and burning the players nearby (if the players take control of the bowls, either by killing the surrounding creatures or wrestling the bowls out of their hands by sheer strenght, they return the favour...).
Meanwhile, on top of the pyramid, archer are pelting arrows to the enemy combatants, and, because of their higher ground and of the steep steps, they have the combat advantage against the climbing enemies...
Anyway, this quickly thrown together map, that carries a few tactical elements and a vague outline of story still feels pretty unique and I think a player going through it would remember it for a long time...
I think that this kind of feel, that makes the players reminisce about it months after the game "he, you remember when we fought these fire giants on the volcano pyramid, by the lava river? And the balrog that woke up at the end of the fight?" is what WOC is trying to achieve...
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