I fail to see how presenting information clearly will influence people's personalities. People who play everything like a first-person shooter and who always speak out-of-character have always done so: when we roleplayed in the early 1980s, there were always the players who crunched numbers, spoke in action movie quotations and acted like serial killers.
Fireball: "A globe of orange flame coalesces in your hand. You hurl it at
your enemies, and it explodes on impact." That is the flavour text from the original Fourth Edition Players' Handbook. I think it gives as much information as you asked for in your example, and I do not see a need for more. The following block of statistics tells me everything else I need to know.
Before I answer, I just want to mention that I am your sig.
Although 4E provides some flavour text for its powers it doesn't even come close to the flavour text of previous editions. In fact editions have decreased in the fluff over the years. Its the fluff that promotes descriptions and character play by players and DMs. So it only stands to reason, the less fluff you provide and the more mechanical the power/spell - the less you will evoke the player to narrate his actions and the more it will be all about the numbers.
I agree 100% that 2-dimensional players have existed during all times of the game we love, but 4E is almost seen to be encouraging it with its one liners.
Compare it to
"A fireball is an explosive burst of flame, which detonates with a low roar and delivers damage proportional to the level of the wizard who cast it...The burst of the fireball creates little pressure and generally conforms to the shape of the area in which it occurs....Besides causing damage to creatures, the fireball ignites all combustible materials within its burst radius, and the heat of the fireball melts soft metals such as gold, copper, silver..etc. Exposed items require a saving throw...to determine if they are affected....The wizard points his finger and speaks the range...at which the fireball is to burst. A streak flashes from the pointing digit, and unless it impacts upon a material body or solid barrier prior to attaining the prescribed range, blossoms into the fireball (an early impact results in an early detonation)...The material component of this spell is a tiny ball of bat guano and suphur."
You cannot compare 4E Fireball to 2E Fireball. The fluff inspires roleplay, a boxed power does not.
Now dont get me wrong, I enjoy 4E, and our group has the experience enough to change the fluff around 4E and Im sure yours does too - sometimes in the PCs favour, sometimes not. We even allow a change in the descrip of the power - in fact we give XPs for good roleplaying/narrative and all that - but that is an experienced group. As a base, if you did not know any editions before, 4E is very very bland.
Give me the simplicity of the mechanics of 4E (with tweaks of course) and the fluff of 1E/2E anyday - that is the campaign we are trying to run.