Ruffle nightlies push AVM2 improvements and add web and desktop packaging

Ruffle posted a string of pre-release nightlies in mid-February 2026 that include concrete AVM2 fixes and test-suite work integrators can start validating today. The captured GitHub release pages show three dated builds: nightly-2026-02-17 (commit 616732b, 17 Feb 00:10), nightly-2026-02-18 (commit b3db038, 18 Feb 00:09) and nightly-2026-02-20 (commit 60e791c, 20 Feb 00:08). Each release page is labeled Pre-release and lists assets, with the UI showing "Assets 12" on the captured entries.

The technical headline from the Feb. 20 build is an AVM2 declaration addition and a clutch of core and test tweaks. The changelog entry reads "avm2: Include missing flash.display::GraphicsShaderFill declaration by @SuchAFuriousDeath in #23075" alongside "core: Move FontMetrics to GlyphSource by @kjarosh in #23019" and "avm1: Migrate `Math` to `ASnative`-style declarations and fix some edge cases. by @moulins in #22999". For anyone tracking rendering or sound shader code paths, the GraphicsShaderFill declaration in PR #23075 is the most directly relevant fix to inspect in nightly-2026-02-20.

Network and runtime compatibility also saw tweaks across the captured nights. Nightly-2026-02-18 includes "avm1, avm2: Make NetConnection.connect schema check case-insensitive by @danielhjacobs in #23041", which should make NetConnection.connect accept protocol schema strings with capital letters where Flash content varies. Nightly-2026-02-17 includes "avm2: Throw correct ReferenceError for E4X wildcard on objects by @SuchAFuriousDeath in #22830", which addresses a class of runtime exceptions for content using E4X expressions.

Testing and developer ergonomics were part of the push. The Feb. 20 changelog lists "tests: Add `log_warnings` tests option by @kjarosh in #23046" and "tests: Fix networking in mocket by @kjarosh in #23072". The Feb. 18 entry adds "tests: Improve some tests by including output from Flash Player instead of Ruffle by @kjarosh in #23047", an explicit move toward aligning Ruffle test expectations with how Flash Player behaves.

There is one explicit web-specific change captured in these excerpts: "build(deps-dev): bump qs from 6.14.1 to 6.14.2 in /web by @dependabot[bot] in #23027" on the nightly-2026-02-17 page. Each release page shows asset listings but the supplied excerpts do not enumerate desktop installer artifacts, so packagers and integrators should inspect the nightly assets for packaged binaries if they rely on browser or desktop distributions.

The captured pages list contributors including @kjarosh, @moulins, @SuchAFuriousDeath, @danielhjacobs and automation actor @github-actions. A broader run of nightlies through late February into March was reported elsewhere, but the release excerpts available here provide explicit changelogs only for Feb. 17, Feb. 18 and Feb. 20, 2026. For now, the takeaway is practical: test nightly-2026-02-20 for the GraphicsShaderFill and FontMetrics changes and nightly-2026-02-17 for E4X ReferenceError behavior, and review the release assets if you need packaged web or desktop installers.