My opinion might very well be colored by nostalgia, but:
Spellforce is an RTS&RPG hybrid.
What sets this game apart from most others is the believable game world. And because this is an RTS, the believable game world is achieved through carefully crafted levels. Every map is full of elements that naturally expand the world. Ruins of ancient castles, caves filled with ghosts, forests with minotaur encampments, huge ominous dark towers and all of this is optional. There are even optional territories. There are at least two maps that you can skip entirely and you'll miss on some loot that's easily replaceable latter in the game, but why would you skip them. You feel like you need to explore more of this world and that's rare in a game.
Another thing that I liked about the game is that your character is a blank slate, in the sense that he has no previous memories. You might think that he's just another amnesiac protagonist, but what makes this protagonist better is that his past doesn't matter. His soul is suspended in a "rune stone" and he is summoned, when he is needed to fight. He doesn't mope around, he is given a mission and he sees it through, like every enjoyable character he is not an emo.
This is one of those games where finish the current mission and realize that its late, so you turn off the computer and as you lay in your bed, just before you fall asleep, you wonder how will the story finally end because it's been so gripping until now. And you can't wait to get back to the game, to play the next mission and experience more of the world.
Post edited July 26, 2013 by MadalinStroe