Gothic1 or 2
Give me 8 to 12 good reasons I should get this game.
I've been pushing it around for a while now.

No need to choose, just get both :D

Have you read the users' comments on this page: http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/gothic_2_gold_edition/reviews/sort/most_helpful
At the end of the day, I would say it is a matter of personal taste.
Here is the top 3 reasons coming to my mind:
- addictive story line
- open world => when facing problems, can experiment own ideas to solve them
- immersive athmosphere created by graphics and music
Concerning which one is the best, I agree with misslilo: BOTH.
But as Gothic I is the first opus, start with that one.

Thank you, but I always was a fan of The Elder Scrolls, but not might and magic. Would that sway your opinion?

Personally, I find Gothic type of game much closer to The Elder Scrolls type (I played Morrowind) than might and magic one.
Please, other readers of this forum, what is your opinion ?

Real time combat were attacking and blocking is primary determined by skill, not by dice or levels. You character will attack better as you improve your in game skills but it still relies on your skill.

Gothic series is completely linear.

that's not true. there's plenty of side quests and things to do. yes, the main plot and progress of the game is fairly linear, but even that changes completely depending on which faction you choose to join and becomes linear later in the game.
gothic 1 has funky controls, but in terms of story and continuity gothic 2 is better when you already know some of the characters and the lay of the land. overall #2 is a little bit better, especially in terms of controls, inventory, and general interface, but both are good.

My bad sorry, I mean exacly what you just wrote. ;p