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Loading resources with the Resource.Load() function

If you instead prefer to load in the prefabs using script, the Resource.Load() function will help you with that. I am not as familiar with it, but you can find documentation on it here.

Resource.Load(string) looks in your resources folder for any prefab matching the string. You can look directly for a prefab with Resource.Load("prefabName"), or look in a specific folder with Resource.Load("folder/prefabName". Note that we always use forward slashes. This is important, as while you may be use interchanging the forward slash (/) with a backward slash (\) for use with alternate operating systems, Unity always accepts the forward slash (/), regardless of the operating system.

You can overload the function with a type, in order to narrow your selection down. Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject) will only return GameObjects, even if you have a texture that is also named "prefabName".

• If the search returns multiple prefabs, it will return an array of the prefabs. If your code is set up to only interpret a single instance, this can lead to errors. Unless you intend to load an array of like-named prefabs, I would recommend ensuring your prefabs each use different names. Regardless, this is generally a good idea for the purpose of keeping your project tidy. 50 tips for working with Unity (Best Practices) offers some sound advice for naming conventions, as well as a plethora of other useful tips.
• If the search returns no prefab, it will instead return null. Obviously, this should not happen. It might still be a good idea to double check that your prefab reference != null after your Resource.Load(), to prevent possible issues, later.

GameObject prefab

// Loading in the reference to your prefab
prefab = Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject)) as GameObject;

// Loading in and instantiating an instance of your prefab
prefab = Instantiate(Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject))) as GameObject;

Loading resources with the Resources.Load() function

If you instead prefer to load in the prefabs using script, the Resources.Load() function will help you with that. I am not as familiar with it, but you can find documentation on it here.

Resources.Load(string) looks in your resources folder for any prefab matching the string. You can look directly for a prefab with Resources.Load("prefabName"), or look in a specific folder with Resources.Load("folder/prefabName". Note that we always use forward slashes. This is important, as while you may be use interchanging the forward slash (/) with a backward slash (\) for use with alternate operating systems, Unity always accepts the forward slash (/), regardless of the operating system.

You can overload the function with a type, in order to narrow your selection down. Resources.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject) will only return GameObjects, even if you have a texture that is also named "prefabName".

• If the search returns multiple prefabs, it will return an array of the prefabs. If your code is set up to only interpret a single instance, this can lead to errors. Unless you intend to load an array of like-named prefabs, I would recommend ensuring your prefabs each use different names. Regardless, this is generally a good idea for the purpose of keeping your project tidy. 50 tips for working with Unity (Best Practices) offers some sound advice for naming conventions, as well as a plethora of other useful tips.
• If the search returns no prefab, it will instead return null. Obviously, this should not happen. It might still be a good idea to double check that your prefab reference != null after your Resources.Load(), to prevent possible issues, later.

GameObject prefab

// Loading in the reference to your prefab
prefab = Resources.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject)) as GameObject;

// Loading in and instantiating an instance of your prefab
prefab = Instantiate(Resources.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject))) as GameObject;

Loading resources with the Resource.Load() function

If you instead prefer to load in the prefabs using script, the Resource.Load() function will help you with that. I am not as familiar with it, but you can find documentation on it here.

Resource.Load(string) looks in your resources folder for any prefab matching the string. You can look directly for a prefab with Resource.Load("prefabName"), or look in a specific folder with Resource.Load("folder/prefabName". Note that we always use forward slashes. This is important, as while you may be use interchanging the forward slash (/) with a backward slash (\) for use with alternate operating systems, Unity always accepts the forward slash (/), regardless of the operating system.

You can overload the function with a type, in order to narrow your selection down. Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject) will only return GameObjects, even if you have a texture that is also named "prefabName".

Note that this does not immediately instantiate the prefab, although you can load the resource inline with an instantiation. You should also consider the possible return structure, as follows:

• If the search returns multiple prefabs, it will return an array of the prefabs. If your code is set up to only interpret a single instance, this can lead to errors. Unless you intend to load an array of like-named prefabs, I would recommend ensuring your prefabs each use different names. Regardless, this is generally a good idea for the purpose of keeping your project tidy. 50 tips for working with Unity (Best Practices) offers some sound advice for naming conventions, as well as a plethora of other useful tips.
• If the search returns no prefab, it will instead return null. Obviously, this should not happen. It might still be a good idea to double check that your prefab reference != null after your Resource.Load(), to prevent possible issues, later.

You would generally load and/or instantiate a prefab as so:

GameObject prefab

// Loading in the reference to your prefab
prefab = Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject)) as GameObject;

// Loading in and instantiating an instance of your prefab
prefab = Instantiate(Resource.Load("prefabName", typeof(GameObject))) as GameObject;

Note the as GameObject at the end. Documentation infers that you must confirm that you wish to load it as the particular type you are setting it as. This concept is also new to me, but I am sure others can explain why you have to do this, if you are curious.

You would also need to include some sort of Get() function in your prefab controller, to allow access to the prefab references from outside the controller.