Thats exactly what they are doing. The engine draws the world by isometric bitmaps. 3D acceleration is not required. That makes the game extremely playable for a lot of players. At the beginning of the game, you have a choice to choose from a pre-set mix of 6 characters to add to your party, or you can generate the party fom scratch.
Every member is controlled by the player.
The spell and magic system is truly going to shine in Icewind. Magic items will be scattered throughout the game for you to find. Some new and unique artifacts are also scattered about. The number of spells are being increased to account for the new monsters and their magic they use. A lot of newer, higher level spells are included to fight some of the more advanced monsters encountered in the game.