Star Wolves is, in my opinion, a successful mix of tactical and role playing elements in a science fiction wrapper. As most eastern European games go, the writing is questionable and the voice acting is atrocious, but the real star here is the gameplay. Being a linear mission-based game (unlike its two more open-ended sequels), Star Wolves has you following a merry band of...well...Star Wolves dealing with pirates and other criminals.
The gameplay is fairly polished, allowing for fun, tense battles. It's in pausable real-time, allowing you to pause the game to give attack or move orders, for example, so things to get too hectic, and hectic they will get. The battles in the game are a joy to behold, as you watch your little fighters dart about, fencing with their targets at both short and long range. Pilots and ships can be customized to a degree, which is where the RPG element comes in. Pilots gain experience, which they can use to gain more specific abilities, like specialties with missiles or sniping or what have you. This allows you to custom tailor your crew as you see fit.
The story of the game is pretty good too, what little I remember of it (I played this ages ago), but it was engaging enough to keep me going to the end. Overall, if you like the idea of small-scale tactical space combat with personalized pilots and tense gameplay, you should give Star Wolves a try.