Type Object

Type Object

One-line pattern summary

A pattern that models object types as data rather than classes so that extension can be handled by adding new data.

Typical Unity use cases

• When increasing weapon or monster types without modifying code.
• When balancing values are managed as planning data.

Parts (roles)

• Type Data: ScriptableObject / table
• Runtime Instance: object that references the type
• Registry: type lookup

Unity example (C#)

The code below is a simplified Unity example based on the scenario described above.

using UnityEngine;

[CreateAssetMenu(menuName = "Game/Weapon Type Data")]
public sealed class WeaponTypeData : ScriptableObject
{
    public string weaponId;
    public int attackPower;
    public float cooldownSeconds;
}

public sealed class WeaponRuntime
{
    private readonly WeaponTypeData weaponTypeData;

    public WeaponRuntime(WeaponTypeData weaponTypeData)
    {
        this.weaponTypeData = weaponTypeData;
    }

    public int AttackPower => weaponTypeData.attackPower;
}

Advantages

• New types can be added through data such as ScriptableObjects without changing code.
• Planning and balancing work can be separated from code deployment, which improves iteration speed.

Things to watch out for

• If the data schema changes frequently, migration and compatibility costs can grow quickly.
• Missing runtime references may stay quiet in the editor but break in actual builds.

Interaction diagram

This shows the flow where an instance references type data to decide its behavior.