EE2.eu - BLOG
28.10.2018 08:30 - Unofficial Patch 1.5.7 has been released!
After two years since the last major version update (1.5.6) - the new Unofficial Patch 1.5.7 has been released. Does it mean that during the last two years nothing has been done for EE2? Absolutely not! I (Dr.MonaLisa) have released 34 Minor Updates, sometimes "important", sometimes "optional". Many updates added NEW features to 1.5.6s series. Best example are "Cycle Time of Day", "Automatic Font Size", new campaigns (huge thanks to Loewenherz), bug and glitch fixes, etc. which initially weren't included in the major 1.5.6 version changes log. With time, Minor Update release process was very improved, fast and no-problematic. Players received monthly updates (usually with DirectX 9 support improvements) and Multiplayer users got pleased with Multiplayer Lobby changes. I am fully satisfied by the work done during last 2 years, even if some people complain about the "lack of new units" which have never been priority for me. But let's talk about the newest update!
Unofficial Patch 1.5.7 was initially supposed to be another Minor Update of 1.5.6s series. One day, inspired by player Laetitian request about possibility to host SinglePlayer games on the Multiplayer Lobby - I accidentally found audio volume control variables (responsible for limiting sounds at the camera zoom-out). I have been searching for it since Unofficial Patch 1.3 (back then didn't even know what assembly is). It created a possibility to release a new Camera Fix version with new zoom and angles settings. Camera Fix versions traditionally change in major updates. That's how "the Next Big Thing" came, as always - unexpectedly. Now we will describe initial Unofficial Patch 1.5.7 features, one by one. The full changes list can be read at: https://ee2.eu/patch/#1.5.7.
Camera FIX ver. 5.1: Zoom settings similar to UP1.4/UP1.5.1 (a huge zoom-out, and first-person view on the ground). Camera angles set to make the game look as close the official, vanilla version of EE2 as possible. Fixed the no sounds problem when maximally zoomed-out and it also makes the volume of sound effects (ambient, battles, etc.) more realistic, depending on camera zoom and units distance (even at the standard zoom). Fixes an issue where units heads were not visible in the preview window (under health bar). Increased the maximum zoom-out, added the "plane view" (activated very high).
Middle Mouse Button Actions: UP1.5 Launcher intercepts middle mouse button clicks and converts them to in-game actions. This feature is enabled by default, but can be disabled by UP1.5 Settings. When it's enabled - the Maximization Helper window displays new Middle Mouse Button Actions switches: "Rotate" - simulates the CTRL key press to rotate buildings. After 0.5 second the action follows mouse cursor to rotate camera in selected direction (simulates CTRL+ARROW keys press). "Move" - scrolls the camera (left, right, top, bottom) instead of rotating. You can manually press and hold the CTRL key to rotate. "Invert" - uses the opposite scrolling directions (feels like scrolling on your smartphone screen). "FSM Hotkey" - simulates the Full Screen Mode CTRL+ALT+H hotkey press (hides User Interface). To execute this hotkey keep the Middle Mouse Button pressed for ~2 seconds and don't move mouse during this time. Additional custom configuration commands (which can be inserted to UnofficialVersionConfig.txt or by UP1.5 Settings) exist: MiddleMouseButtonSleepBeforeCameraRotationMs=500 | Time (in milliseconds) after which camera starts rotating when MMB is pressed. Prevents accidentional camera rotation when rotating buildings by a short click. MiddleMouseButtonRotationCheckIntervalMs=0 | Delay (in milliseconds) after which Launcher checks for another mouse position change. Default 0 is 1 ms. Low value is recommended. MiddleMouseButtonFullScreenModeActivationDelayMs=2000 | Delay (in milliseconds) after which the Full Screen Mode hotkey can be activated. Option "Invert" is activated by default (I like how it is in Anno 2205).
Maximization Problems: Unofficial Patch 1.5.7 added new improvements to fix maximization problems (directly in the game process). In many cases using Maximization Helper Solutions and disabling fullscreen optimizations will no longer be needed.
More AutoSave Settings Frequencies: Up to 6 hours 30 mins (before only 30 mins). Autosaving is now possible every 2 mins 30 secs.
Air Mission waypoints: Increased from 5 to 20 (so you can efficiently plan air routes in CB/RP games).
Scenario Editor Player Colors: Unlocked possibility to use the same color for multiple players.
Multiplayer Lobby for SINGLEPLAYER users: It's now possible to host and start unrated SinglePlayer games (with AI players and 1 human player only) on the Multiplayer Lobby. Those games are not counted (rating, total games played, total game time) to prevent statistics abuses. It helps to stay online, receive private messages from friends and be ready to start a Multiplayer session when more players are online.
Of course there are several small bug fixes, Laucher improvements not mentioned here. Please always check https://ee2.eu/patch/#1.5.7 for full changes list, which includes changes added by UP1.5.7 Minor Updates.
That's all. I hope I didn't disappoint players by "not many" changes this time. For me it always feels more, because I know how much time it costs, and how depressive testing procedure can be. I can tell in secret, that one feature (possibly reducing game mouse lagg) was removed right before release, because didn't pass stability tests. It was painful and will be hard to forget, but let's move on...
BONUS - That's what I get from one Pakistani player, the same day:
