Starts off easy and somewhat monotonous, but if you stay with it, you'll be rewarded by a fascinating, challenging RPG.
I was right to stick with it. There's a point in the game when the combat and encounters suddenly get very interesting; Drakensang goes from excruciatingly easy and tedious, to where you're fully engrossed and gritting your teeth and using all your power and tactical skills (and spells and inventory) to get by. And still you're reloading because it's not enough. I had to backtrack once or twice because a boss was far beyond my party's level; you have to be careful about choosing your battles, especially around the fourth-to-eighth levels.
So there is indeed a satisfying payoff as you get into the game, a payoff that offsets the early part of the game where your party gains experience under some less-than-awesome circumstances.
The graphics are quite pretty, and there is substantial detail in the environment. The story ain't bad, either. It's not "Torment," but hey, it's not bad. The voice acting is fine and can be quite amusing ("Strunkle's feesh are cheap and deleesh," the fishmonger's wife calls). The English translation is decently fleshed-out and without any notable flaws -- descriptions are fairly explicit and helpful, and dialog is fully developed.
All in all, it's a very nicely done RPG with a lot of tactical depth and a decent plot. Even with some of the too-linear quests, Drakensang has a way of holding your interest.
There are some rudimentary concessions that some "purists" may find distracting, such as the system where there's no penalty for casual pick-pocketing; and you can pick a lock and take items from a chest that's right out in the open and sitting next to a merchant. But in general you're not going to get anything all that valuable from these little ventures, and I personally don't mind being given free rein in such things. To me, it's all about the tactics and the need to properly manage stats and equipment.
If you're looking for a Baldur's Gate -style RPG, you could do a whole lot worse than Drakensang.