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Visual Assist 2025.3 release post

Tristan Soliven

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Visual Assist 2025.3 is now public and available to download. 

This release improves developer experience by updating the feedback UI when using some of our added features from recent releases. We’ve also updated our options dialog’s look and feel alongside some of line highlighting options. We’ve also fixed many of the bugs and issues based on user reports.

The highlight of this release is a new option when using VA’s extract method so you can now fine-tune the parameter list—which includes selecting variables, excluding unnecessary ones, or arranging their order. 

On the visual feedback side, we’ve enhanced the popup interface when using Replace Auto With Exact Type. Additionally, macros expansion will also have its context revealed upon hovering. Learn more about these changes by going through our release blog post.

Download the release now by visiting our website download page.

Enhanced Extract Method with parameter customization

Visual Assist’s Extract Method feature now offers full parameter customization through an intuitive dialog interface. When extracting code into a new method, developers can now:

This enhancement skips most of the post-extract method editing, instead, a smarter interface guides you to adjust the extracted method as Visual Assist creates the implementation.

This is unlike most rigid UI implementations found in other tools. Visual Assist uses its intelligent parsing to understand your code modifications, providing a more natural and flexible experience.

New editing options for extract method. Edit name, move, or reorder parameters.

How it works: Select code you want to extract, choose Extract Method under the quick actions menu, and customize the function declaration in the dialog using standard C++ syntax. Use VA’s updated UI to create the optimized method accordingly.

Macro Expansions on Hover (Quick Info)

Visual Assist now displays macro expansions instantly when you hover over macro definitions, providing immediate insight into complex preprocessor directives without interrupting your workflow.

Hover over macro definitions to show its expansion instantly.

Improved dot to arrow conversion now supports for auto pointers

VA’s dot-to-arrow conversion automatically changes . to -> when accessing members through pointers, eliminating the need to manually switch between dot and arrow operators.

With this update, however, the dot to arrow conversion feature now handle auto pointer declarations better. The plugin now recognizes explicit pointer hints in auto variable declarations, providing more accurate code completion and conversion.
Example:


int myInt = 1;
int* myIntPtr = &myInt;

auto myAutoPtr = &myInt;      // Implicit pointer
auto* myExplicitAutoPtr = &myInt;  // Explicit pointer - now detected!

In the above example, “myAutoPtr” and “myExplicitAutoPtr” variables have their auto type both resolved to “int *”, but with the second one the fact that it should be a pointer is made explicit.

This enhancement makes the feature more reliable when working with modern C++ auto declarations, reducing coding errors and improving developer productivity.

Modernized Options Dialog Interface

The Visual Assist Options dialog has been completely rebuilt with a modern UI framework, moving away from the legacy Win32 interface theme. This modernization represents the first step in a comprehensive UI refresh that will extend to other Visual Assist components in future releases.

Visual Assist 2025.3 updates the look and feel of the options dialog.

Improved Ray Line Highlighting Style

One of VA’s ways to showcase the current active line is achieved by using the “ray lines” highlighting style. Ray lines provide a subtle, non-intrusive way to highlight the current line using minimal horizontal lines without left/right borders.

New improved ray line highlighting style.

This option has been refined with better vertical spacing, addressing user feedback about the previous tight layout.

If you prefer using a different highlighting style, you can choose from the available options in the options dialog (Thin Frame, Background Color and Ray Lines). To choose your preferred highlighting style, navigate to Extensions — VAssistX —Visual Assist Options — Editor — Highlighting —”Highlight current line with:” 

Enhanced Replace Auto With Exact Type Accessibility

Building on the popular Replace Auto With Exact Type feature in previous releases, Visual Assist now makes this functionality more accessible via the right click menu or automatically via typing  the auto keyword.

Use Quick Info menu or right click on Auto.

Bug Fixes

For bug fixes and general improvements, the most critical update is the restoration of shader syntax coloring support in Visual Studio 17.12.0 and newer versions, addressing multiple related issues with code formatting and syntax highlighting in shader files across VS 2019 and 2022.

Additionally, there are significant performance improvements for Unreal Engine projects, specifically enhanced responsiveness of quick actions and refactoring menus. The release also includes fixes for HLSL file formatting and improved navigation performance for MAUI base classes.

The following list summarizes the most important bugs addressed in this release:

Availability & Feedback

This release was made generally available on June 30th and can be downloaded via the downloads page. As always, we appreciate feedback, especially on recently introduced features and the UI changes we introduced. 

Update now to an active license to utilize all the features and fixes in this release. And if you have any questions or encounter any issues, feel free to reach out to support@ewholetomato.com.

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