Freedom Force is what every person who wanted to play a superhero with the HERO System but thought the massive amount of arithmetic required was a complete let-down. Now, thanks to some nerds who couldn't let go of their dream, Irrational Games has produced a top-notch superhero game complete with an easy-to-use (and all too addictive) character customisation system.

The game is a cross between real-time strategy (RTS) employed by Westwood in their Command and Conquer series and a pseudo-turn based system; the closest this game plays to is Micropose's X-Com Apocalypse -- and that's not even close to the way this game is played. In short, you can expect to be playing a RTS, but with the ability to temporarily "stop game time" with a press of the spacebar to issue orders. Gameplay resumes once the space bar is depressed (or if the Right Mouse Button was used to 'stop game time', an order is issued).

Although the story is slightly campy due to the timeframe (the game takes place in 1962 and during the height of the Cold War), the singularly most attractive aspect of the game is the ability to create your own superheroes (without the headache inducing formals). With custom skins available for download off the Internet, you can get to see if Superman can beat the Flash, as well getting the thrill of loosing all the Wild C.A.T.S. on Patriot City. Imagination and free time are your only limiting factors with this stand-out game.