One aspect of DnD 4e I like is the relationship between types of damage and defenses.

One complaint of Hero System is that its to hard to break game balance.

I think this is a valid complaint. The problem is that a system that isn't easy to break just feels to limited in how and what kind of character I can make.

So for me the trick is to develop some forms of measurement to keep things in perspective and have a way to communicate with the players about their character.

In Hero System the general rule is that your speed is the number of actions you get in 12 seconds. In most super hero campaigns this leads to some pretty dramatic activites. In a heroic game where equipment, poisons, and other "equipment" is free this can really over balance the game if a character has a very high speed.

Steve Long is really an admirable product development expert. His work on Hero System over the last decade plus can only be seen as an amazing amount of production. But despite his skills and the capability of the entire company Hero Games had to lay him off late last year.

HERO System basics

Authors: The Bunneh and Narf the Mouse and HTML from Bluesguy from the Hero Games Forums

This is a two page writeup on how Hero System works. Its not intended to give you anything more than an overview. You won't be able to play the game from this but it gives a good overview of how the system works.

Having played DnD 4e for more than two years now, I and my gaming group are suffering from the same issues as when I played AD&D from 1983-1988.