In Gothic they move around and have things they do. This was during a time when for example, elder scrolls, the npc's literally stood still just waiting for you to talk to them. The worlds are just immersive and the npc's make it come to life. The worlds of Gothic and the npc's/characters are what really make it stand out. The combat might feel a little wonky but it has it's own systems that make it work well and it's more engaging to play combat in then most other rpgs of that era.
The controls of the Gothic games take some time to get used to and might feel 'clunky' to you. Playing them now can be great IF you can go in with the right expectations. The npc's, the combat, the story, the 'rpg' elements were just much more engaging to me. IMO the Gothic series was more engaging (at the time they came out) then the closest thing to them in the more popular rpgs, the Elder Scrolls series (though I still love Morrowind's world). Gothic I and II (and it's expansion, Night of the Raven) are both excellent rpgs.
