Last week yielded quite a healthy release of titles from varied platforms, spearheaded by the launch of one of the most anticipated handheld games, Square Enix's Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. This time around PC games take up the spotlight as several publishers churn out  titles of varied genres sure to satisfy most gaming palates, as well as a smattering of handheld gems on the side. Check out this week's games in the full article.

Lighthouse Interactive and Vertex4's SunAge has just gotten a new update in the form of  patch 1.06. This adds a few much-needed improvements to the game, such as difficulty settings for the single player campaign, better formation dragging features, and various other changes.

More information on the patch can be found in the full article.

Download: SunAge patch v1.06

Publisher Lighthouse Interactive seems very happy with the relative commercial success of PC title Ship Simulator when it announced its new partnership with developer VSTEP. This deal will bring Ship Simulator 2008 to Canada and the rest of United States during Q1 of 2008.

The franchise Ship Simulator gives players the chance to control some of the most varied and detailed ships available today. The latest iteration in the series has already been released in Europe by Lighthouse Interactive earlier this year. New improvements and features include the following:

• Dynamic ocean waves with realistic ship motions
• Long distance travels with open sea voyages between ports
• Advanced damage system showing holes in the ships after severe collisions with other ships and even icebergs
• 50 new challenging missions for both single player and multiplayer modes
• Extensive day, night and weather systems
• Eight new ships, an oil rig and 3 new locations: San Francisco, Southampton and Marseille
• Walkthrough functionality and interactive bridge controls on all ships
• Controllable container crane
• Advanced vector graphic sea chart with full-screen display option, transparency setting and high level-of-detail on text and depth readings
• Free-roam mode where players can choose a ship, an environment, weather conditions, time of day, and time parameters

See the full list of features and other screenshots after the jump!

Lighthouse Interactive remains silent about Avencast: Rise of the Mage, a breakthrough title by Austrian developer ClockStone. We know little about this action RPG, so we're definitely glad that the latest trailer we found sheds some light on the game.

Taking the role of a young mage, Avencast promises the excitement of crafting a powerful character, but also requires the player's skill to unlock the hero's full potential.

The key features of the game include many hours of exciting gameplay set in diverse worlds, over 30 fantasy based monsters with advanced artificial intelligence, strong player personification, state-of-the-art 3D engine that allows for a fluid combat system, generates special lighting and shadowing effects for a fully engaging experience, and a lot more.

Sounds good? Expect the game to hit the shelves come September 2007. For now, enjoy the trailer.

Lighthouse Interactive and Kerberos Productions has recently announced the release of a third patch for their space strategy game for the PC, Sword of the Stars. The folks behind the game is already deep into the development of the upcoming add-on called Born of Blood yet they could still manage to release a patch for the game.

Anyhow, the latest patch - patch 1.2.2, will add more updates, fixes, and additions. Check out the game's patch notes:

Updates

• Improved AI diplomatic reasoning
• Expanded AI tech research strategies.
• Various tweaks and changes to AI rebellion behaviour.
• numerous changes to AI Rebellion and its effect on gameplay.
• Improved combat ship manoeuvring.
• Adjustments to the Liir's movement

Fixes

• All currently known bugs fixed.

Additions

• Chat between players in the game lobby and those playing is now possible.
• Numerous GUI additions
• New splash screens
• Weapon tool tip displays weapon arcs in combat view.
• Added news events.

You could get the patch by clicking on our read link below.

The game Ship Simulator 2007 published by Lighthouse Interactive and developed by VSTEP is the sequel to last year's Ship Simulator 2006. The video game set new grounds last year with the accurate simulation of different ships in various environments. That said, this video game is a niche title, for those who demand absolute realism from their games.

Ship Simulator 2007 is a through-development of the current simulator, but should be graphically better since it will be using an upgrade of the original Quest 3D engine. The gameplay will still be the same, with you taking control of a ship and following a pre-made mission or just simply sailing around. There is no word whether this game will allow users to design their own missions like in Ship Simulator 2006. The other features are covered below.

Ship Simulator 2007 will be released throughout all European countries, excluding the German-speaking territories and Benelux this June. If you want to check out how the game is looking as of now, check out the video and see if the game is for you.

For more details, check the full article.

3rd Quarter of 2006 saw the birth of Lighthouse Interactive's space strategy PC title, Sword of the Stars. Today, they announced that they will be releasing an Add-On for it soon.

Sword of the Stars: Born of Blood is designed to make the game more diverse and armed with  more tactical depth. If you enjoyed the original installment, then you'll have an even more challenging time here, with the introduction of a new alien race, new strategies for you to learn, new extensions in your ships, weapons, technologies, and villains.

Here's a quick preview of the storyline for you: there's a new race in town, and they ain't friendly towards the SotS universe. They are The Zuul, brutal warriors who are on an insatiable quest for "The Great Masters". And you, you will have use to them -- whether you like it or not.

You will be able to play the race of your choice, with each one having their own unique aspects, strengths and capabilities. Each race would also have its own method for travelling the stars, as well as other tactical differences, so that's sure that you won't be bored adapting just one technique throughout the game.

Working with Kerberos Productions once more, Lighthouse adds that there will be a new patch to be released next week for the original game. In the meantime, keep it posted here for more update on the SotS: Born of Blood expansion.

Where have all the good old school RTS games all gone? World domination and crushing all of your enemies to smithereens. Red Alert, Command & Conquer (we're still waiting for the new installment), and StarCraft will always have a special place in our hearts. Admit it, you miss them as much as we do.

Something both old and new comes from Lighthouse Interactive and Vertex4. SunAge features amazing graphics, and smooth gameplay, and the full shebang of gameplay options (campaign, skirmish, online and LAN multiplayer). We all recognize these features as RTS-isms: Alternate modes for all units (read: Siege Tank), Connection Lines (we're guessing its the cool looking pylons/towers), Command queuing, and Indirect Intelligent Targeting.

The storyline is pretty basic. The Earth is dying and you, as the hero, are trying to protect your federation from being annihilated by a cult called Raak Zun and an army of alien Sentinel drones. We figure you get the drill. The game doesn't need to run on a PC on steroids since system requirements are pretty normal. Here's the minimum system requirements:

• Windows Me, Windows 2000, or Windows XP
• 1 GHz Intel® Pentium® III or AMD® Athlon™ processor
• 512 MB RAM
• 4x speed CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive
• 1 GB free hard disk space
• 64 MB 3D accelerated video card

Expect SunAge on the shelves by May 2007.

See all the screens after the jump!

The Dutch company, Lighthouse Interactive, recently announced that they have acquired the European publishing rights to Groove Games sci-fi FPS offering, WarPath for the PC. Most people know by now that the game was developed by Digital Extremes, and that the game revolves around the Utopian and resources rich planet of Kaladi.

In the game, you must choose between three alien species: The Ohm, The Kovos, and The Coalition. Each group has conflicting agendas and ideologies and it is up to you to claim Kaladi for your race.

Anyhow, the game has been out in the U.S for some time now, and Lighthouse is bringing the game towards the other side of the Atlantic. WarPath is set to hit European retail stores in the first quarter of 2007. For now, here are the screenshots for you to consider.

   

2.Yo-ho, yo-ho, and a bottle of rum! Davey Jones' locker ain't be big enough for the "boat" of us, eh? The rootin', tootin' barnacles from Lighthouse Interactive just set me sea-lovin' soul free like a gull up the masts. They've just announced that an official Add-On pack for their Ship Simulator 2006 is going to be on the works, and they're going to be working with VSTEP.

The Add-On will feature six new ships, one of which would be a giant cruise ship that can carry thousands of passengers. How's that for a party, eh? More than that, they are going to be playable in the 2006 version environments and even be used to create new missions. The Add-On will be available by February for £ 12.99 (around US$ 25.29).

From tugboats to cruise ships to yachts, you can now be your own skipper with this ship-sim. And we've got screenshots too. Now, you can have all the free boat rides that'll last you a lifetime, without even having to scuffle with scurvy.