Hello people,
In no particular order.
The old BI (British India) passenger ship Uganda had that or a similar system. It was a complete pile of pants. Never worked (1982) and I saw some "big ship" Captains looking pretty green at times.
Stabilisers as known today were 1st invented to keep the "gun platform" of a battleship steady. The ship with stabilisers had the edge over the one that didn't. Sometime around the 1st world war I think but couldn't be sure.
Stabilisers don't necessarily get in the way of lifeboats during abandonment. They are usually sufficiently below the waterline to be out of the way. (see the end of my next paragraph)
Modern cruise ships are easier to keep stable than those of 20 - 30 years ago. Do not confuse stability with motion due to weather. They are designed with damage control stability in mind. It will take something very, very extreme to make them sink, and if they do, design features are in place to ensure that they sink in an upright condition.
They do not handle weather extremes as well as the older ships, hence the prudent Captain studies the weather continuously. Cruise ships are usually scheduled to be clear of usual/known hostile weather.
Regardng manoeuvring. 2-3 bow thrusters, 2-3 stern thrusters, twin high lift independent rudders, twin screw controllable pitch propellers (cpp)and you can move that large ship sideways in most weathers, spin it round on the spot (can't do that in a car!). The newer ones control all of that lot with one joy stick. It seems that the waste of life playing on the playstation is justified!