I understand why the game is liked -- I just don't get why its loved.
The good: The characters feel alive. The game is challenging enough (least the PC version is -- Console is much easier from what I've been told). There are multiple meaningful choices to make in the game.
The bad: the writing is contrived -- it has everything that I hate about bad/lazy fantasy writing. The classes are unbalanced, so while there are definite choices to make, there are practical limits; the world feels closed and claustrophobic (not like the immersiveness and feeling of freedom I've gotten used to in many rpgs). I never actually felt immersed in the game world. Yes there are meaningful choices, but 90% of the game still pllays out exactly the same every time, so it feels like too much work to replay it to see how the choices will play out. Games should not feel like work.