Hello this game is truly a masterpiece, but I would like to ask if my save files from the older versions will transfer over to the new version? I played on an old version for months without knowing there was a new one out.
If old version is a beta version, save games probably will not work.
If old version is a released version downloaded from this website, save games should work.
You did not say are you playing on Windows, Mac, Linux or Android. Some Android users seem to have had problems with save files when updating. Other platforms should work without issues, if updating is done properly. I play on Linux, install new version to a new directory tree, copy save files from old directory to new and continue playing. If you use the patch file, read the instructions, they are inside the zip in a README -file.
Note that developer recommended starting game from beginning for version 0.18, since there is new content available in the beginning of the game.
Saves will always carry over to new versions, but beta versions do run the risk of breaking saves, so it's recommended to make backups.
No extra work is required to continue a save, simply launch the new version and click Continue.
The only exception is with Android. Manual transfer of saves is required.