Debugging in Unity with Visual Studio – An Essential Part of Game Development

For all game developers, debugging should be a top priority, and this is where Visual Studio comes in to help!

Step 1: Install Visual Studio

Installing Visual Studio is the first essential step to debugging Unity. Visual Studio provides an easy-to-use environment for developers to step through code, view variable values and set breakpoints.

• Visit the official Visual Studio website to download the latest version of Visual Studio.
• Create a new project by opening Visual Studio upon installation.

Step 2: Configure Unity for Visual Studio Debugging

Once you have installed Visual Studio, the next natural step is to configure Unity for Visual Studio debugging.

1. Open Unity and go to “Edit” > “Preferences” > “External Tools”.
2. Select “Visual Studio” in the “External Script Editor” section.
3. Set the “Editor Attaching” option to “Yes”.
4. Save the changes made and close the Preferences window.

Step 3: Debugging Your Unity Project

With Visual Studio installed and Unity configured for debugging, debugging a Unity project will now become a walk in the park!

1. Open your Unity project.
2. Set a breakpoint in your C# script by clicking on the margin located at the left of the line number where you want the breakpoint to stop the program execution.
3. Start the game in Unity or attach the debugger to a running instance of the game. To attach the debugger, go to “Debug” > “Attach Unity Debugger” in Visual Studio.
4. Unity will then pause at the breakpoint, allowing the developer to inspect variables, evaluate expressions, and step through code.

Step 4: Utilize the Debugger Tools

The Visual Studio offers various essential and helpful tools while debugging Unity projects.

• Breakpoints: A point in the code where the debugger will pause to inspect variables, evaluate expressions or step through the code.
• Debug.WriteLine(): A method that helps write messages to the output window during runtime.
• Watch window: Varables and expressions can be evaluated during runtime.
• Interactive debugging: Enables running and executing code during runtime.

Step 5: Common Debugging Issues

Some common debugging issues can arise while working with Unity and Visual Studio. Here are a few:

• Breakpoints not being hit: Ensure that the “Editor Attaching” option in Unity is set to “Yes”.
• Debugging not starting: Ensure that your project is set up for debugging, and no errors exist in your code.
• Debugging slow: Debugging can be slow sometimes, especially when large amounts of data are being processed. Consider using conditional breakpoints or other debugging tools to speed up the process.

Conclusion

Debugging is an essential part of game development in Unity. By following the five easy steps outlined above and utilizing the tools provided by Visual Studio, debugging Unity projects can be simplified, and game development can be made easier.