The OpenMW team is proud to announce the release of version 0.51.0 of our open-source engine! Grab it from our Downloads Page for all supported operating systems.

This release allows modders to create magic effects through our scripting API and introduces terrain vertex painting to our content file editor. It also fixes many Lua-related crashes and addresses a few minor annoyances with gamepad menu navigation introduced in the previous release.

Check out the release video by the astounding Gitshiver (also available on PeerTube), and keep reading to learn more about what we have in store for Morrowind’s 24th anniversary!

Things to Keep in Mind

• As always, it is generally safe to keep using your existing saves, configuration files, and mod setups in the new release.
• To avoid issues, please update any shader mods and mods that implement new UI widgets through OpenMW-Lua. If you still experience slowdowns or visual artifacts, try to narrow down the mods responsible and contact their authors.
• The saved game format has changed since version 0.50.0. You cannot load newer saves in older releases.
• Have a great time.

(more…) 2026-06-19 - capo - No pingbacks so far.

It’s been nearly half a year since 0.50.0 landed back in early November, but we’ve almost reached Area 51, and we’re ready to share the first release candidate (RC) builds of the next release of our open-source engine! Grab one from our GitHub releases page.

0.51.0 introduces a new script context to our Lua scripting API, the Load context. Fabulous secret powers bestowed on Load scripts allow them to inject and modify game data right after it is loaded. Most notably, this includes spell effects—which allows mods to add spells that don’t rely on the built-in effects.

0.51.0 also fixes game-breaking dialogue issues in Russian and Polish Morrowind, introduces BC7 texture compression support for DDS files, adds terrain vertex painting to our editor, and more.

As usual, our intention for the RC period is to have you try to break it — run into any uncaught crashes, freezes, regressions, or other unexpected issues, and report them to us on our issue tracker. If you don’t run into any issues, tell us too!

The RC1 prerelease description includes a preliminary list of changes. Do give it a read.

A few things to keep in mind before you jump in:

• The saved game format has changed since 0.50.0. Your existing 0.50.0 saves will load in 0.51.0, but once you save in 0.51.0, you cannot go back to 0.50.0 and load that newer save there. Consider keeping a “pre-RC” save around.
• The scripting API hasn’t had meaningful breaking changes, but asterisks apply: mods with a UI that were written in a suboptimal way may be an annoyance for the new widget validation. Double-check that all of those are up-to-date.
• Shader mods, including some post-processing shaders and those that replace the built-in forward pass shaders, must be updated due to certain texture handling changes.
• Please read the known issues section in the RC notes. Some issues you don’t, in fact, have to report, assuming you’re 100% sure it’s an issue listed there.

You install it like you would install a stable release: run the installer or unpack the archive into a new directory. If you were using a portable install, remember to set that up again for the new build; your configuration and saves are otherwise stored in their normal location.

If you’re not curious or brave, the current stable release 0.50.0 is, of course, still available from our Downloads page.

To join in on the forum discussion, head over to the release topic.

We’ll see you later—hopefully, on release day!

2026-04-24 - capo - No pingbacks so far.

The OpenMW team is proud to announce the release of version 0.50.0 of our open-source engine! Grab it from our Downloads Page for all supported operating systems.

This round number release overhauls the gamepad experience, makes foundational steps in dehardcoding combat, further expands our Lua scripting API and, among the host of user interface fix-ups, introduces the highly requested quick item transfer.

Keep reading to learn more about what 0.50.0 brings, polishes and translates into Polish!

(more…) 2025-11-07 - capo - No pingbacks so far.

It’s barely been a few months since 0.49.0, but wouldn’t you know it — version 0.50.0 is on the horizon, as we are ready to share the release candidate (RC) builds with you! Grab one from our GitHub releases page for all supported operating systems.

Despite the nice round number, 0.50.0 is a focused release — its core highlight is the improved gamepad support and optional gamepad-tailored UI (which you can enable in the launcher). But even if you’re a hard-boiled mouse and keyboard enthusiast, you should appreciate the variety of UI fixes and game mechanics fixes coming with this update, as well as the steps made towards dehardcoding combat.

As usual, our intention for the RC period is to have you break it — run into any uncaught crashes, freezes, regressions, or other unexpected issues, and report them to us on our issue tracker. You may also suggest improvements to the gamepad UI, and some of your ideas may end up in the final release. If by chance you don’t run into any issues whatsoever, don’t be shy — tell us!

If you’re eager to test 0.50.0, updating from 0.49.0 and continuing your existing playthroughs should be safe, but keep in mind that mods that work extensively with UI layout files must be updated to be compatible with the UI changes. Some mods that use OpenMW-Lua may also need to be updated — so double-check if your setup is up to speed. Updating from a previous release is as simple as using the installer or unpacking the archive to a new directory, though if you were using a portable installation, remember to repeat the process of setting one up. Your configuration and save files are otherwise stored elsewhere.

We took care not to change the saved game format since 0.49.0. This means that you should be able to revert to 0.49.0 on your ongoing playthrough if you experience issues in the new release, although this is not recommended. For RC testing purposes, this also allows you to compare any behaviour between 0.49.0 and 0.50.0 easily.

If you’re not eager to test and would rather try out a battle-tested release, visit our Downloads page. 0.49.0 is not going anywhere.

Read the RC1 prerelease description for a preliminary but comprehensive list of other changes coming in the upcoming stable release. And see you around then!

(Oh, by the way. Kindly try not to refer to this release as 0.5. OpenMW 0.5 was released 17 years ago.)

2025-09-28 - capo - No pingbacks so far.

After almost 3 years of development, we’re thrilled to release OpenMW version 0.49.0—our largest and most ambitious update yet! Grab it from our Downloads Page for all supported operating systems.

This new release brings a hefty number of additions to our Lua scripting API, further polish to every single area of the engine—animations and lighting in particular—and it is the first one that goes beyond Morrowind!

The release announcement video by the tremendous Atahualpa and the stupendous johnnyhostile is entering its final stages of production, and we’ll let you know when it’s ready—but for now, be sure to read below for the full list of changes.

(more…) 2025-07-04 - capo - No pingbacks so far.