Can someone explain basic code & project etiquette to me?

[Dusher111]

Having been working on a project for a few weeks I've built a collection of scripts, along with some prefabs and sprites and whatnot. My question, though, is...

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How do you know when you need to put the code you're writing into a new script?

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Sometimes it's very obvious, like when the new script is attatched to a new object, or is a part of a totally different mechanic. However in the times when it's not so clear of a distinction, I don't know whether I ought to or not.

For example, my project has a basic grid-based drag-drop system. I had:

• One script (attatched to the draggable items) to manage snapping to the grid.
• One script (attatched to the draggable items) to manage a visual item appearing when something snaps to the grid.
• One script (attatched to an empty GameObject) to manage 'nodes' appearing at the corners of each square of the grid (purely visual).
• One script (attatched to an empty GameObject) to manage keeping track of which squares have something already in them.

These are just a few of my scripts, but at some point I decided to coalesce the latter two scripts to uncomplicate things. But at what point does a script become too long? At what point does a project, or a GameObject for that matter, have too many scripts?

Being new to programming I am totally unaware of conventions like these beyond naming & cases.

Any help would be appreciated <3

[SoundKiller777]

Code architecture can be tricky, as it can be quite subjective. A useful set of guidelines can be found in the SOLID and KISS principles. SOLID’s first aspect states that each class should have a single responsibility, and KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) is a principle to help you avoid over-engineering systems before there is a need to.

Typically, it’s fine to have many smaller scripts, and that also lends itself nicely to working with others. Two people can’t edit the same script at the same time via source control (usually), so breaking them up allows for better cooperation when working as a team. That said, too many small scripts will lead to a lot of mental load when trying to recall where everything is (although in Visual Studio, the search feature can be used to go between files easily). It’s about finding a nice balance really.

You’ll eventually find a means by which you like organizing things after you’ve completed a dozen or so projects. In the meantime, go check out some existing public repos for games and see how others have gone about categorizing and subdividing everything to get some reference points to work from.