At long last, Brave New World 1.5 and everything (well, most everything) we've promised for it is finally here. This is probably the mod's biggest update since it's initial release, which is fitting since it is intended to be the last. Barring any bugfix updates, Brave New World will not be updated again until 2.0 - which is a *long* way into the future from now. For the time being, Synchysi and I would like to take a break and enjoy the fruits of our labor.
While there is a lot that can be said about the many features that 1.5 brings to the table, I think the most important thing to note here is how this update really marks the point where a fun little project between two guys has grown into the results of a massive community effort. So many of you have helped to make this release possible that I don't even know where to start except by directing y'all to the newly-expanded credits section where I've made an attempt to thank everypony properly.
The one person I should probably mention first is Think, who not only helped out by checking over my work for errors and other piddly shit, but went that extra mile by making a new RNG to replace the shitty one that the game had originally *and* the nATB patch, the latter of which sadly did not make it into 1.5 as we had imagined it would. This is because it was decided that such a drastic change A) would be better suited for the more massive overhauls of a 2.0 release, and B) needs to be beta tested with extreme prejudice. Synchysi and I have worked with Think to create an "official" 1.5 nATB beta patch that is, for all intents and purposes, nATB for BNW 1.5. Just be advised that it's still in the fine-tuning stages whereas Brave New World itself is now considered to be largely complete.
Of course, I've had my hands in many side projects, as well. Mish's BNWCP (Brave New World Character Planner) is one of them to now be included in the actual mod distro as part of the unlockable content (a public version that omits all of the game's hidden equipment can be found here), as is Funnyman's original rage guide. Nakar's excellent build guide, unfortunately obsoleted by this new version, is currently being rewritten wholesale on Brave New World's brand-spanking new wiki page with a little help from yours truly, and a little birdie told me that there might just be a more informative version of Funnyman's rage guide up there one of these days, as well.
And this is to say *nothing* of all of the streams and massive publicity that I have had the joy and privilege of being a part of in these last few weeks. The 1.5 hype train is a runaway that cannot be suplexed, and for once I feel as if I'm only a small part of the reason for that. All of you have helped make this project into something truly special, and for that I am eternally grateful. Everybody stay tuned for Lockirby's 1.5 "flaming laptop" challenge, where the goal is to finish the game before his laptop melts and stops working, and then stops being a laptop. Because that's pretty much the only thing he *hasn't* done at this point.
It should probably go without saying at this point, but ANYONE UPDATING FROM AN VERSION OLDER THAN 1.5 NEEDS TO START A NEW GAME. Anyone playing any of the 1.5 versions is good to update an existing game, however - just be sure to do an in-game save and reload (no savestates) as always to prevent general wonkiness.
And I think that's it. Once again, thank y'all for everything. See you on the other side!
What's new in 1.5.2:
What's new in 1.5.1:
What's new in 1.5.0:
(Oh, and if liking things on Facebook is your bag, baby, then by all means go nuts.)