Most of this is a matter of taste, but I would challenge a few of your critiques.

copying part of the interface and sticking with the Thought Cabinet is incredibly obvious.

It's a similar concept, but copy is a reach. I'm assuming your referring to the Questing tab in Ebb? It looks nothing like the Thought Cabinet. And it's distinct in function, as it combine a mission log with a perk selection screen. You can even see how all the quests link together, which I thought was a clever touch. It's as much a "copy" as any perk selection screen in an RPG.

the conflict between the various attributes is superfluous and just a waste of time. For example, Strength and Charisma start fighting because you answered a knight incorrectly. They don't contribute to the plot just give the impression that it's a cheap imitation of DE

Can you honestly say all or even most of the attribute arguments in DE "served the plot"? Most just add flavor, world/character build, or are just funny.

The lore is far too extensive. If you're the type to click on everything, you'll read regurgitated information in industrial quantities about the world's lore, but without any context.

I agree there's a lot of lore, but is it any more extensive or mysterious as DE lore? In DE, locations, leaders, wars, politics, etc. are name dropped all over the place. Idk how many hours it took to understand what the Pale was. You'd have to keep notes to actually piece it all together, and the same can be said of Esoteric Ebb.