UPDATE: Just finished the game and I'm still baffled due to how much content this game has. Granted, a couple of quest are the typical "get x of this item" , but most of the quests on a map do have a story behind them. Also remember how I said this reminds me of The Witcher 2? my "v" button agrees with me.
When you begin playing Inquisition you will probably feel that the UI is quite familiar, or at least it was in my case. It reminded me a LOT of The Witcher 2, which is fine, cause I liked it anyways. It brings some elements from that game as well, like improving weapon and armors with parts (which you can also craft), but for me the most obvious was the UI.
The skills are distributed like in Dragon Age 2, with that "branching" mode where you can also upgrade your spells. Also returning from DA2 is the combat style overall (with the addition of the Tactical Camera), when you, for example, hold the attack button with a Mage and it unleashes a barrage of magical missiles towards the target.
So, if you played both The Witcher 2 and DA2, you will feel quite at home with this game, taking the best from both into a new game.
Now for the new elements: To progress with the story and unlock new areas, you need to spend "power", which in turn you earn from doing assignments like gathering requisition materials, side quests and so on. I believe it's a well thought system, because it prevents you from zipping through the main quest and force you to branch a little bit to get this "power", and by doing so force you to experience more of the game.
I've just played about 12 hours of the game (early unlock with South Korean VPN) and so far this is a solid 8.5 for me. Granted I'm probably missing elements of the game that just from story progression I didn't unlock, but even so, this is surely one of 2014's finest.