unity-dots-best-practices

What problem does it solve?

Unity DOTS projects often fail to scale or become hard to maintain due to poor data layout, accidental allocations, implicit system ordering, and costly structural changes inside hot paths.

Core Features & Use Cases

• Design for data layout & access patterns: Guides component, buffer, and blob asset choices to match read/write behavior and reduce contention.
• Eliminate runtime allocations and sync hazards: Focuses on allocation-free hot paths, careful dependency management, and minimizing sync points.
• Make execution order explicit: Recommends clear system group attributes and narrow system responsibilities to prevent fragile behavior.
• Burst/job compatibility guardrails: Provides constraints for Burst-safe code and native container lifetime/allocator rules.
• Self-check and anti-patterns: Includes a verification checklist and calls out common DOTS pitfalls (e.g., structural changes without ECB).

Quick Start

Use unity-dots-best-practices when designing an ECS component and ISystem that must stay Burst- and job-friendly under 10k–100k entities.