Big Trip and Willy just arrived to spice up one of the most realistic and nerdy simulation games of the year

Big Trip, Nordic Duchess, and Willy - no, these are not the obscure characters in a new hero shooter or anything like that. These are the brand new ships arriving in Seafarer today. If you're unaware, this is the new simulation game from Astragon that takes the hyper-realistic, methodical, machine-based action of games like Microsoft Flight Simulator and Roadcraft, and drops it into the ocean. Tasking you with transporting cargo of all varieties across the high seas, Seafarer is now receiving its first major content update that gives you even more stuff to freight and more ships to organize.

Whether it's off-roading, farming, managing a soccer team, or train driving, there have been plenty of beloved simulation series over the years. But in recent times, more niche newcomers have been springing up than ever before. Whether they're geared more towards therapeutic fun like Powerwash Simulator, or force you to be precise and strategic like the aforementioned Roadcraft, there are so many options these days. Seafarer arrived in early access back in October to fill another niche sim gap.

While the main draw is to become the captain of a cargo ship, taking your goods from one harbor to the next, there are also some alternative experiences you can take part in, such as piloting tugboats or even becoming a firefighter that responds to emergencies on the water. As well as carefully navigating your ships across its huge map, you can explore your vessels on foot as well. While not a massive draw for the smaller inflatable speed boats, it is pretty cool for some of the bigger machinery.

Speaking of, the new LNG & Bulk Update for Seafarer adds in three hefty new ships, including its largest to date. That would be Big Trip, a 200 meter-long cargo ship that can transport up to 760 containers at once. It's a behemoth, and is hopefully a step towards getting even more colossal ships in the future - Big Trip is roughly half the size of some of the cargo vessels sailing the seas in the real world.

Then there's Willy, which is built to transport some of the new bulk goods that the update brings. These include things like coal, sand, or gravel.

Finally, the Norse Duchess is designed to ferry LNG ( liquid natural gas), which is the second new substance in this update. With several huge tanks on deck, a fun little minigame has been added that sees you control the flow of the pumps for when you're filling up on LNG.

The new update also encourages you to go sightseeing, with the ability to whip out a camera and take photos of any scenic locations or natural wonders you encounter while sailing around. Several more random missions have also been added to keep your career moving forward.

The LNG & Bulk Update for Seafarer is live right now and is free for all players. Head to its Steam page here if you want to learn more about the game or give it a go for yourself.