The future element is very cool to play off of especially if things end up worst than before.
"Every action has an equal and opposite reaction."
Season 1 - Future Hiro Nakamura goes back in time to Stop an horrific atrocities from happening by giving a message to Peter Petrelli "Save the cheerleader, save the world!". Peter & the gang end up saving New York from being destroyed . (Altering the future )
Season 2
However their were consequences for altering the future (Hiro is sent back to the past and is directly responsible for creating the villain of Adam Monroe (the Founder of "The Company", The Twelve members , The death of Kaito Nakamura - Hiro's Father & the man who release the The Shanti virus.) (Peter is hunted by The company, Adam manipulates Peter into joining his twisted Crusade to save the world .)
Once again our Heroes save the World again (Preventing The Shanti virus from wiping out Man Kind, and just as Nathan is about to reveal to the World the true about ordinary people who have super powers living among them, he gets shot ....)
Season 3
The Gunman is revealed to be the future Peter Petrelli who comes back to make sure Nathan doesn't reveal the truth about Superhumans living among ordinary people . (to prevent a Future in which Super powered begins are hunted by the Government ) However The Future Peter does more damage than good with his actions (setting a series events in motion that will have even more problems for our Heroes.... and introducing it's Villains to center stage .