Properties¶

Game Creator properties are a special type of class that allows to dynamically specify the source of a field value using a dropdown menu. The menu's options are dynamic and can be added without the need of overwriting Game Creator core code, allowing to write maintainable and decoupled code.

There are different types of Properties, each with its own set of options. All of them have in common that, when retrieving them, an instance of Args parameter is passed, which contains two fields:

• Target: A reference to the Game Object responsible for calling the property
• Self: A reference to the Game Object containing the property reference.

Property Get types allow to retrieve a value and Property Set types allow to set a value. Game Creator comes with a collection of both types, but each module increases the amount available. You can even create your own property types to extend the existing ones.

Property Types¶

There are a multiple default property types available, which start with PropertyGet ~ and end with the type. For example PropertyGetNumber is the property type for numeric values, and PropertyGetBool is the analog for boolean (true/false) values.

There are also property setters, which allow to set the value of a property. They start with PropertySet ~ and also end with the type name. For example the PropertySetGameObject allows to set the value of a game object reference.

Using Properties¶

To use a property it's very simple. You just need to declare them as you would with a primitive type, but instead of getting the value directly, call the Get(args) method to retrieve its value.

For example, let's say that in a component, you want to get a string value. Instead of declaring a value like this:

public string myValue = "This is my string";

You could use a property so the source of that string value isn't hard-coded, but set from the Inspector. Like this:

public PropertyGetString myValue = new PropertyGetString();

This will display a dropdown menu on the Inspector with the current option selected. By default it's a constant string, but the value can be chosen to come from the name of a game object, a local or global variable, etc.

To get the value you simply call the Get(args) method:

string value = this.myValue.Get(args);

Args args = new Args(this.gameObject);

Creating Properties¶

Just like Instructions and other visual scripting nodes, one can create custom properties to interact with other assets or custom code. To create a new GET Property simply inherit the PropertyTypeGet[TYPE].

public class GetNumber42 : PropertyTypeGetNumber
{
    public override Vector3 Get(Args args)
    {
        return 42;
    }
}

public class GetNumberInteger : PropertyTypeGetNumber
{
    [SerializedField] private int myNumber = 42;

    public override Vector3 Get(Args args)
    {
        return this.myNumber;
    }
}

To return the value the Get(args) method must be implemented. The Args parameter contains the Self and Target values calling the property, which can be used to dynamically get the final value if necessary.

Optionally the PropertyTypeGetNumber child class can also override the String property to display a nicer title in the Unity Inspector. For example:

public class GetNumber42 : PropertyTypeGetNumber
{
    public override Vector3 Get(Args args)
    {
        return 42;
    }

    public override string String => "42";
}

Property classes can also be decorated with the Title, Category, Description and other attributes, just like it is done on Instructions and other visual scripting nodes.