This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Siratim Mustaquim
In unity there are these questions related to Transform and GameObject, such as,
- Which one to return as parameter?
- Which one to receive as a serialized field from Editor?
Here goes the simple reference points to make the decision
What you get with Transform :
Transformational info of a GameObject: position, location, scale (local and world)
Parent Child Transform Information : It handles the transformational information between parent and child GameObjects
Gives reference access to the attached GameObject
What you get with GameObject:
Permission to attach components: add multiple components / scripts (AddComponent())
Lifecycle management : Create, destroy, enable and disable the GameObject along with the components.
What to Choose ?
First match your use case with the above. Pick from that. Then consider the below issue
GameObject can be enabled and disabled, Transforms can’t be disabled. Having a reference of a GameObject can return null if it is disabled. At that stage enabling that gameobject is not possible via script as the reference is null ! In scenarios like these passing a Transform or receiving a SerializedField as Transform via Editor makes more sense here. And you can always get the reference of the GameObject by using the gameobject property of the Transform !
Happy Coding !
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Siratim Mustaquim