Ships

Ship Simulator 2008 now has its own Shipyard, a place to “downloadable ships, environments and features” for the simulator.

Here’s an example of one the available add-ons.


Ship Simulator 2008 - The Shipyard - The Furie from Pjotr van Schothorst on Vimeo.

The add-ons are payware, but this is a great way to expand the sim. The costs are pretty reasonable. The ship in the above video is only 4.99 Euro. This is very cheap compared to add-ons for most flight simulator products.

There are a couple of interesting news items in relation to Ship Simulator 2008 this week.

Firstly, Lighthouse Interactive have announced the first Ship Simulator competition:

Today leading computer software publisher Lighthouse Interactive and game developer VSTEP announced the Ship Simulator ‘Sail the Open Sea’ Contest sponsored by Matrox Graphics. The contest starts on Monday, June 9, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. (GMT) and closes on Monday, June 23, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. (GMT). Enter for a chance to win over ten prize packages and one of two Matrox TripleHead2Go^TM Digital Edition units. For contest details and to enter the ‘Sail the Open Sea’ Contest, visit www.shipsim.com/contest or click on ‘Contests’ at www.lighthouse-interactive.com.

To enter, all you need to do is send them an email describing a Ship Sim adventure you’ve had. The top 3 entries will receive the prizes.

Secondly, Lighthouse have released a multiplayer server application for Ship Sim.

Today publisher Lighthouse Interactive and developer VSTEP released a multiplayer server application for their successful simulation hit, Ship Simulator 2008. The application provides all Ship Simulator 2008 players the ability to create their own stand-alone multiplayer servers. The multiplayer server application is English, but compatible with all available language versions of Ship Simulator 2008. Furthermore the application is suitable for players with Ship Simulator 2008 and the official add-on Ship Simulator 2008: New Horizons. This highly realistic simulator puts players at the helm of some of the World’s most varied and detailed ships found at sea, allowing them to explore accurately recreated environments. Ship Simulator is available in 20 countries and 7 languages.

This is a pretty neat idea and is sure to open up the sim to more players.

Here’s another one of those deceptively simple looking games. Docking Simulator by Michael Trigoboff, Ph.D lets you try your hand at, well, docking!

Be warned – have a couple of hours spare before you click on the link!

Now this is really making me feel old. As the Astrogen web site points out, the original Ports of Call was released no less than 20 years ago. I remember playing it at the time – it was pretty advanced for its day.

Well, it’s back again in the guise of Ports of Call Deluxe 2008.

20 years ago a computer game captured the hearts of strategy and simulation fans. Finally there is the classic »Ports of Call« as high end game completely in 3D. All 100 harbours, as there is New York for example, have been converted three dimensional for PoC Deluxe 2008 and it allows realistic manoeuvers into and out of harbours. 15 detailed container vessels offer lots of alternation in this extensive maritime economy simulation. All elements of the former successful version have been integrated in this deluxe version. You’re starting as an owner of a tiny cargo-ship and have to stand the test of the hard navy transport business and build step by step a huge ocean carrier with lots of ships.

You can read more about Ports of Call on the official web site.

Lighthouse Interactive has announced their upcoming New Horizons expansion for Ship Simulator 2008:

Challenge your friends online with New Horizons. Try your hand at sailing a luxury cruise liner & a classic yacht or feel the impact of the waves as you guide your fishing vessel home through a storm! New Horizons offers new highly realistic environments and adds eight exciting new vessels for your sailing pleasure. Includes 20 all new missions and free roaming multiplayer mode too! The add-on will require the original game to run and will automatically upgrade any version of Ship Simulator 2008 with all previous updates and patches.

This press release is accompanied by the official boxshot and 6 screenshots from the game. To download this assets visit: ftp://ftp.lighthouse-interactive.com.

KEY FEATURES ‘Ship Simulator 2008 Add-on: New Horizons’

• Eight new vessels for Ship Simulator 2008, including a modern harbour tug with advanced azimuth thrusters and a push boat with 4 different cargo barges.
• Online multiplayer free-roaming action, including towing.
• Brand new sailing area Cornwall (Padstow), England, built with advanced visuals and bump mapping technology.
• 20 new missions, involving the new vessels and the new environment.
• Unlimited gameplay: in-game downloading of new missions.
• Option to connect and disconnect barges to the push boat in-game.
• New walkthrough options: explore the push boat’s highly detailed engine room.

To find out more about Ship Simulator 2008 Add-on: New Horizons, visit: www.shipsim.com.