Jagged Alliance 2

Jagged Alliance 2 is a so-called "mercenary" game. You hire mercs, buy equipment for them, train them, and then you let 'em kick some ass. The story revolves around the fictional country Arulco, where many years ago the king's wife murdered him and took over control of the country, turning it into a dictatorship. Now, the king's son Enrico asks you to remove her from power. With the money he gives you, you hire your first set of mercenaries. As you conquer sector after sector, you will eventually take control of mines that will supply you with more money to buy better mercs and equipment.

JA2 is a very good and well-balanced game with strategy, roleplaying and action elements. You get to build up your mercs by training them in different fields like explosives, mechanics and marksmanship. You then direct them in an isometric view through different sorts of terrain, including towns (thats where the fighting gets really interesting). There are also night scenes, where you can use night-vision goggles for example.

JA2 never really gets boring, there are always things to do and new equipment to try out. The game's difficulty level slowly rises throughout the game: In the end you'll even have to take out tanks! (thats where C4 explosives come in handy)

Anyway, Jagged Alliance 2 is pretty much an instant classic in my opinion, building upon the success of its predecessor, though sales never really took off, probably due to the fact that you really have to "get into the game" to completely appreciate it.