New Release

Creates a new release of the HLTB for Steam plugin, handling the full release workflow.

Before running this skill, run the game-id-review skill to ensure that the game IDs are high quality.

Usage

code

/new-release
/new-release 1.2.3

If no version is provided, suggests a patch increment.

Workflow

Phase 1: Gather Information

•Read plugin.json and package.json to get current local version
•Verify versions match - abort with error if they differ

•Get latest GitHub release version:

bash

gh release list --limit 1 --json tagName --jq '.[0].tagName'

•Check git status:

bash

git status --porcelain
git branch --show-current
git fetch origin && git status -uno

•
Get commits since last release for release notes:
bash
```
git log v{GITHUB_VERSION}..HEAD --oneline --no-merges
```
•
Generate human-readable release notes. Read the actual diffs and changes (not just commit messages) to write clear, user-facing descriptions grouped by category (e.g., "Bug fixes", "Improvements"). Exclude:
- •Version bump commits ("Release v...")
- •Trivial commits (typos, formatting)
- •Skill/agent updates (.claude directory changes)
- •CI/workflow updates (.github directory changes)
•
Verify ../PluginDatabase exists and contains the submodule:
bash
```
ls ../PluginDatabase/plugins/hltb-millennium-plugin
```

Abort conditions:

•Local versions don't match
•Working tree has uncommitted changes
•Not on main branch
•Local branch is behind remote

Phase 2: Determine New Version

•Parse current version as major.minor.patch
•If user provided version argument, validate format (X.Y.Z) and use it
•Otherwise, calculate patch increment (e.g., 1.0.4 → 1.0.5)
•
Use AskUserQuestion to confirm version:
- •Header: "Version"
- •Question: "Release version {SUGGESTED}?"
- •Options: suggested version, minor bump, major bump, custom

Phase 3: Present Execution Plan

Display this exact format and ask for confirmation:

code

## Release Plan: v{NEW_VERSION}

### Current State
- Local version: {LOCAL_VERSION}
- GitHub release: {GITHUB_VERSION}
- Git: clean, on main, up-to-date

### Release Notes
- {BULLET_POINT_PER_SIGNIFICANT_COMMIT}
- ...

### Steps to Execute
1. Update plugin.json version: {OLD} -> {NEW}
2. Update package.json version: {OLD} -> {NEW}
3. Run `npm install` to update package-lock.json
4. Run `npm run build` to verify build succeeds
5. Run Lua tests to verify backend code
6. Commit: "Release v{NEW_VERSION}"
7. Push to origin/main
8. Trigger GitHub Action "Create Release"
9. Wait for release workflow to complete
10. Update GitHub release with human-readable notes
11. Update submodule in ../PluginDatabase to latest commit
12. Commit in PluginDatabase: "Update HLTB for Steam to v{NEW_VERSION}"
13. Push PluginDatabase to origin
14. Create PR to SteamClientHomebrew/PluginDatabase

Proceed with release?

Use AskUserQuestion with options: "Yes, proceed" / "No, abort"

Phase 4: Execute

Execute each step, reporting progress. Stop immediately on any failure.

Step 1-2: Update versions

Use Edit tool to update version in both files.

Step 3: npm install

bash

npm install

Step 4: Build

bash

npm run build

Abort if build fails.

Step 5: Run Lua tests

bash

cmd //c "busted tests/"

Abort if any tests fail. If busted is not available, see docs/development.md section "Running Lua Tests" for setup instructions.

Step 6: Commit

bash

git add plugin.json package.json
git commit -m "Release v{VERSION}"

Step 7: Push

bash

git push origin main

Step 8: Trigger GitHub Action

bash

gh workflow run release.yml -f version={VERSION}

Step 9: Wait for workflow

bash

gh run list --workflow=release.yml --limit 1 --json status,conclusion,databaseId

Poll every 10 seconds until status is "completed". Abort if conclusion is not "success".

Step 9.5: Update GitHub release notes

The workflow's generate_release_notes: true only produces auto-generated commit links. Replace them with the human-readable release notes generated in Phase 1:

bash

gh release edit v{VERSION} --notes "{RELEASE_NOTES}"

The notes should include category headers (e.g., "### Bug fixes", "### Improvements") and end with a full changelog link:

code

**Full Changelog**: https://github.com/{OWNER}/{REPO}/compare/v{PREV_VERSION}...v{VERSION}

Step 10: Update submodule

bash

cd ../PluginDatabase/plugins/hltb-millennium-plugin
git fetch origin
git checkout origin/main
cd ../..

Step 11: Commit PluginDatabase

bash

cd ../PluginDatabase
git add plugins/hltb-millennium-plugin
git commit -m "Update HLTB for Steam to v{VERSION}"

Step 12: Push PluginDatabase

bash

cd ../PluginDatabase
git push origin

Step 13: Create PR

bash

cd ../PluginDatabase
gh pr create --repo SteamClientHomebrew/PluginDatabase --title "Update HLTB for Steam to v{VERSION}" --body "Updates the HLTB for Steam plugin submodule to v{VERSION}.

## Changes
{RELEASE_NOTES_AS_BULLET_POINTS}"

Completion

Report success with:

•GitHub release URL
•PluginDatabase PR URL

Error Messages

Provide clear, actionable error messages:

•Versions don't match: "plugin.json has version {X} but package.json has version {Y}. Fix this manually before releasing."
•Dirty working tree: "Uncommitted changes detected. Commit or stash changes before releasing."
•Wrong branch: "Currently on branch {X}. Switch to main before releasing."
•Behind remote: "Local main is behind origin/main. Pull latest changes first."
•Build failed: "Build failed. Fix build errors before releasing."
•Tests failed: "Lua tests failed. Fix test failures before releasing."
•Workflow failed: "GitHub release workflow failed. Check Actions tab for details."