Definitely a game worth playing even today, more than 4 years after it's release.
Allow me to begin by saying I am not going to write a full fledged, 2 page review - I've been beaten to it about 4 years ago, thankfully. However I do wish to emphasize some of the points which most people seem to count against the game.
First up is the battle system - Many reviews have complained about the battle system being static and linear. Well, as for static, I can hardly imagine gigantic ships such as Battleships and Cruisers to be highly mobile and extremely maneuverable, flying around enemy ships and turning at lightning-fast paces. After all, we are talking about ships the size of large cities here, aren't we?
As for linear, to date, I havn't heard of any Real-Time-Strategy game that has been able to turn battle between units interactive. Besides, apart for the standard aggressive/normal/defensive stances of units, Hegemonia also lets you choose targeting type - Hull (higher damage), Engines (disable unit's movement) and Weapons (lower unit's fighting capabilities), a trait which almost any other game leaves out.
Next up is the interface - I do agree, the interface is vast and complicated, and takes time to get used to. However, every screen in the game can be opened using the F1-F6 keys (some require units to be selected), which makes the interface a whole lot more accessible. More on this matter, hitting the space key will open up the Starmap, a 2D map used for quick referencing and easy commanding. Contrary to popular belief, having played the game many times, the Star map does no shift to awkward angles unless you want it to - except following cutscenes, in which the 3D display also changes it's former angle. However the Starmap almost never rotates sideways, and can always be restored to it's former state by simply holding down the Down arrow key.
And if you're having problems understanding the objectives of missions, please try reading the text that is displayed so plainly underneath the briefing text on the initial briefing screen at the start of each level, beneath the lable "MISSION OBJECTIVES".
The only real problem I've encountered that has made the game rather troublesome is the invisible units bug after loading a saved game. That is, until I've found out about the unofficial 1.10 patch that Digital Reality released, which has easily solved the problem.
Unfortunately, though, units that have a timed life-span (such as Wormhole Inhibitor Probes and Jump Redirector Probes) do not have a count-down timer, which is a bit unnerving when you're racing against the clock to finish a mission, and are not sure if your units will be constructed in time, before the timed unit is destroyed. However it doesn't really have an impact on the gameplay itself.
All-in-all, I can't say I've seen a RTS game more polished and refined than Hegemonia: Legions of Iron, as well as one that has such detailed graphics and such a multi-optional tech-tree, combined fairly with just the right touch of humor, thus not making the game ridiculous or overly-serious.
If you think old games are a waste of time, think again, because Hegemonia delivers gameplay and graphics that compete with (and even surpass) most of today's RTS games.
This one is truly worth playing.