...These are just a few, a very small selection of some of the things that made this CRPG so incredible, and I just wonder if PoE has ANY of these features? if not then I am very confused as to what a CRPG actually is compared to Arcanum, because I played BG2 and it felt more like a storybook with gameplay consquences mainly happening in the story and dialogue then it is the actual game like Arcanum.
Arcanum does stand out for the variations in gameplay it allows, though its main quest is more limited to 2 paths.
D:OS offers some of those features (conversation options setting Traits, multiple ways to solve quests, freedom to act good/evil) and betters Arcanum in the ability to use/craft objects and interact with the environment (plus it has *much* better graphics). However I suspect you might find Planescape Torment (very dialogue heavy, unusual background, near-total freedom of main character development, interesting companions) a closer fit with your ideal CRPG.
PoE does seem to play very much like BG/BG2 but with the addition of conversation options that can set traits like Cruel, Clever, Benevolent, etc and a party reputation system that is locale-specific (killing an unpopular noble might gain you prestige in one location and lose it in another). That does make it a better role-playing experience and worth checking out, but it too has a main plotline which you have to follow at some point.
The presence of a central plotline (and the practical requirement for it to have limited branches) is pretty much universal in CRPGs. If you are looking for one where you can just wander around as you please, the Elder Scrolls series (Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim) may be worth a look as well as the Two Worlds series. However that freedom tends to give them a more generic gameplay feel also.
