I'm rather new to the world of TTRPGs, but I wanted to try a superhero campaign and bought this to have some inspiration for an urban city environment. The biggest thing I feel like I should make clear to potential buyers is that it was very well-detailed, but it is DATED. I know that it is marked here as being updated in 2016, but I believe that this book was originally written sometime around 2003 - which is now going on 20 years ago!

I'm sure this would have been invaluable back then, and there's still a huge chunk of very useable source material that you can use as a base or inspiration for your own setting. But make no mistake, this is a "city of the future" as written before smartphones.

As is, it's an interesting time capsule of projected future tech - similar to the dissonant amused feeling you get from watching original Star Trek episodes, where they have spaceships and instant teleportation and yet Captain Kirk pulls out a giant brick of a walkie-talkie instead of a cellphone. Millennium City has skyscrapers littered with holographic billboards and only allows self-driving cars on its roads - but also has a healthy population of "Information Kiosks", newstands with payphones and "internet connection booths". It's difficult to not feel dated when a potential campaign hook has Mayor Biselle planning to run as "the first African American president".

As an aside, I felt like the portrayal of the police and their relationship the citizens of Detroit (which as of now boasts an 80% black population) was also a reflection of an unfortunately dated time period, as the social nuance of the last few years has come into hard conflict with the copaganda attitude that prevailed most of media in the early 2000s.

None of this is the actual fault of the writers of this book, who I'm sure did their best projections as to what the near future would appear like. But as someone wanting to do a modern campaign, I was a little taken aback by how dated the setting was. We are as far from the Y2K era as the writers of this were to the 1980s, but as long as you are aware of this going in, there's a lot to admire about the detail given to this location.

I do not know if there are any plans to make a completely updated version for the 2020s, or perhaps a new superhero location altogether, but I would be incredibly interested in it, especially if it was given the attention to detail that this book currently has. However, I feel like it falls short of what was promised as far as a modern setting goes, and I would have been more hesitant to purchase it had I known it was suited for a more retro campaign. Ultimately, Millennium City feels appropriately named, but as a relic of the millennial past instead of future I assume it initially intended.

A nice short ambient piece, with a meditative vibe. You could certainly use this as a theme for a recurring character or locale in an RPG.

This is a superbly thought-out campaign setting, based on the geopolitics of a near-future alternate Earth experiencing First Contact with aliens. It's a very original concept, well worth trying out with your RPG group.

A handy 1-pager for building starting equipment for non-supers in Champions / Hero System. Easily adapted to any other RPG rules.

Awesome soundtrack to set the tone when the big hero arrives in your RPG.

A very handy little guide for how to build all kinds of normal objects in the Hero System. Easily adapted to other game systems.

A comprehensive overview of a classic superhero role-playing game. Well edited, full colour layout (in the PDF) and confidently written with real authority. You will not find a more encycopedic book about the history of the genre or running games of this type. The provision of customisable archetypes is welcome, as it provides a quick way to get into the game which is appreciable given the compexity of the standard character generation process.

You do need a core rule book to play it, however, whether it is Champions Complete or the Hero System volumes. It is a pity the developers didn't simply expand the book to make it complete the first time round.

Sadly impossible to get a hardcover + colour edition these days.

Great game, BUY IT!

It would be great if this was actually the 1st Edition PDF and not the 2nd. You can tell the 1st edition by Utility only being a half page in the 1e version, instead of the full page in the 2e. It's the same problem on the Hero Games Website. While normally I would say I love the book, this isn't the book it's supposed to be and it seems no one cares.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Hero Games, I don't actually play Champions, and my preferred supers RPG is Golden Heroes (1984).

Look, this book was written in a different time, so small bits of text may offend. I found nothing to complain about, but you might be different. You've been warned.

Also note the maps are many years out of deate. There is no longer any Czechoslavakia or Yugoslavia, for instance. Easy enough for a European to realise but potentially causing problems for our American cousins.

Another villain book, but this one focuses on villains outside the US. Obviously, it focuses on Europe, given it title, whih means it is a great resource if your supers game is set anywhere in Europe.

There are three teams and plenty of independents for you to use wholesale or simple get ideas from. If nothing else the names are pretty cool for creating your villains (or even heroes).

The book has odd placements in its geography, probably caused by the book being written by an American. For instance, there's a map that purports to be Scotland but actually shows Ireland, Monaco is in the wrong place (its actually on the coast, not the Alps), and such like. Just ignore the errors (or research where they should be!) and you'll be fine.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Hero Games, I don't actually play Champions, and my preferred supers RPG is Golden Heroes (1984).

A sourcebook for the United Kingdom! Okay, this is one book I'd like to find in print as my own Golden Heroes campaign is set in the UK (since I'm British and live there).

Please note that it was written in the 1980s though, so things have changed a lot over the last 30-40 years. Believe me, the 80s were my teenage years and I lived through it.

If you're British, you might not get a much use from it since you'd know all about the technology, culture, and life in the UK. If you're not a Brit though, this book is great, detailing the UK in broad strokes simply because a detailed book would be huuuge.

It has a good number of stats for heroes and villains, any of which might spur your imagination. There's also a cool section on magic and monsters, which is great for my own game (which utilises magic and horror) but might not be for yours.

Get this if you want an overview of the UK (noting it's is badly out of date!) and its heroes and villains.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Hero Games, I don't actually play Champions, and my preferred supers RPG is Golden Heroes (1984).

If you want to add aliens into your supers game, and let's face it, you'd be foolish not to, this book is well the cover price. The book contains six teams and a small write up for an outfit that protects aliens. Not an X-Files entry for sure, but it could be used that way.

As normal, the stats could be used as written, changed to your favoruite supers RPG, and used to gain inspiration.

If your game doesn't use aliens or if you think you have enough, ignore this book. if you to add aliens, or just expand how many you already have, then it's well work buying.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Hero Games, I don't actually play Champions, and my preferred supers RPG is Golden Heroes (1984).

A book on corporatoins for an RPG system? Who'd have thought this contained so many good ideas. It starts with examples corporations, giving their CEO both a good and evil persona to choose from. Some companies have links to each other. Then you get a lot of text about how companies work. While this could be real dull, it actually works. The books ends with some example stats and a supervillain team. While I haven't used the villains in my own game as written, I've taken their team name for several of my own villains.

If you want to make companies a core part of your supers game, then book is for you. If you just want to use them as background, it's probably not one to buy. I'll definitely use it in my games, though.

Disclaimer: I don't work for Hero Games, I don't actually play Champions, and my preferred supers RPG is Golden Heroes (1984).

This is basically a monsters book - lots of game stats and descriptions. Over all, it's a great book, with plenty of villains you can rework for your preferred supers RPG or to take inspiration from when creating your own characters. Sure, it's an older book, but good ideas never grow old.

This is a very well put together product. It contains almost anything you would need to run a full-fledged fantasy campaign using the Hero game system...except the rules frequently reference the main Hero Games System rulebooks. So, if you want to make the most use of this product, you must pick up the Sixth edition Hero Games System rulebooks, so keep that in mind.