Hello everyone,
Update 0.20 is now live 🎉
An exporter issue was reported after the December update, but I couldn't hotfix it earlier because I forgot to create a clean v0.19 snapshot before the holidays, so the focus shifted to finalizing and releasing 0.20 earlier than planned.
A large part of this update focuses on under the hood improvements, especially around database performance, memory usage, and responsiveness. Asset loading times should be faster, memory spikes reduced, and some workflows are now smoother. See the full patch notes for details.
It also includes some user requests, alongside a new Package Manager, editor refinements, and a round of fixes and polish.
Note: I’ll remove the 'Beta – v0.14.1 Downgrade (Pre-database changes)' branch very soon. The on-demand database update greatly improved scalability, but initially introduced more frequent loading interruptions for users with hundreds or thousands of assets per category. Since then, the database has been significantly optimized, and the workaround branch is no longer necessary for anyone still using it. After loading a category in the asset browser, reopening it is now near instant for the rest of the session.
As always, thank you for the continued feedback, reports, and patience, it helps shape each update.
Patch Notes
Database
Internal work on the database system, including refactoring, polishing, and architectural improvements. Asset lookups have been upgraded from O(n) to O(1) using new hash table–based methods, alongside updated pooling techniques for better memory management
These changes result in faster load times, reduced memory usage, and much smaller memory spikes. These improvements will be most apparent in projects with large numbers of custom assets and/or when many built-in categories have been loaded
Font Selection Dropdown Menu
Loading time has been improved with near-instant reopening after the initial load
The filter state is now preserved when reopening the menu
Now shows the generic loading progress popup if texts have not been loaded yet
Asset Browser
Improved asset sorting method to better respect alphabetical order
Removed the loading bar inside the asset browser UI. It now shows the generic loading progress popup instead
Opening an unloaded category now immediately clears the Asset Browser and displays the generic loading progress popup, improving perceived responsiveness during category loads
The work on the database also brings a smoother loading process when opening categories, eliminating some of the freezes
Image Picker
Reopening categories is now significantly faster
Package Manager
To address requests for hiding built-in assets in the Asset Browser, parts of the database have been restructured around asset packages. These packages can be enabled or disabled individually
A new Package Manager window is available from the top-right navigation menu in the Project Hub/Main Menu. Disabling packages removes them from the Asset Browser and frees associated memory
Project Hub / Main Menu
Added the new Package Manager window, accessible from the top-right navigation menu. This allows fine-grained control over which built in asset packages are loaded and visible in the asset browser
Decks Collection
Updated the options dropdown button to a three-dots icon to avoid confusion with the copy/paste icon used elsewhere in the UI
Built-In Variables
Added new special variables:
{decknum_padded} Same as {decknum}, but with leading zeros based on the deck count number length
{projectnum} Calculates the card’s virtual position within the project, based on the decks structure (May be expensive on slower systems.)
{projectnum_padded} Same as {projectnum}, but with leading zeros based on the project card count number length
{projectcount} Outputs the total number of cards in the project
Variables Window
Reduced vertical spacing to better accommodate the expanded list of special variables. Updated and clarified several variable descriptions
Fixes
Fixed an issue with internal formatting of frame_7
Fixed several built-in images not using power-of-4 dimensions, slightly improving memory usage
Fixed an issue where the tooltip could remain visible after switching categories if an asset was hovered just before the new category started loading, causing it to display an asset name from the previous category
Fixed anchoring of the image-picker panel. It should now be consistent regardless of window size
Fixed scrolling not working in the layer hierarchy when hovering over a layer header
Fixed an issue where layer ordering could break when rendering cards in the exporter, causing elements to appear missing