Common types of Assets

Image files

Unity supports most common image file types, such as BMP, TIF, TGA, JPG, and PSD. If you save your layered Photoshop (.psd) files into your Assets folder, Unity imports them as flattened images. You can find out more about importing images with alpha channels from photoshop, or importing your images as sprites

FBX and Model files

Since Unity supports the FBX file format, you can import data from any 3D modeling software that supports FBX. Unity also natively supports importing SketchUp files. For information on how to get the best results when exporting your FBX files from your 3D modeling software, see Optimizing FBX files.

Note: You can also save your 3D files from most common 3D modeling software in their native format (for example, .max, .blend, .mb, .ma). When Unity finds them in your Assets folder, it imports them by calling back to your 3D modeling software’s FBX export plug-inA set of code created outside of Unity that creates functionality in Unity. There are two kinds of plug-ins you can use in Unity: Managed plug-ins (managed .NET assemblies created with tools like Visual Studio) and Native plug-ins (platform-specific native code libraries). More info
See in Glossary. However, it is recommended to export them as FBX

Meshes and animations

Whichever 3D modeling software you are using, Unity imports the Meshes and animations from each file. For a list of 3D modeling software that Unity supports, see Model file formats.

Your MeshThe main graphics primitive of Unity. Meshes make up a large part of your 3D worlds. Unity supports triangulated or Quadrangulated polygon meshes. Nurbs, Nurms, Subdiv surfaces must be converted to polygons. More info
See in Glossary file does not need to have an animation to be imported. If you do use animations, you can import all animations from a single file, or import separate files, each with a single animation. For more information about importing animations, see Model import workflows.

Audio files

If you save uncompressed audio files into your Assets folder, Unity imports them according to the compressionA method of storing data that reduces the amount of storage space it requires. See Texture Compression3D Graphics hardware requires Textures to be compressed in specialised formats which are optimized for fast Texture sampling. More info
See in Glossary, Animation CompressionThe method of compressing animation data to significantly reduce file sizes without causing a noticable reduction in motion quality. Animation compression is a trade off between saving on memory and image quality. More info
See in Glossary, Audio Compression, Build Compression.
See in Glossary settings specified. Read more about importing audio files.

Other Asset types

In all cases, your original source file is never modified by Unity, even though within Unity you can often choose between various ways to compress, modify, or otherwise process the Asset. The import process reads your source file, and creates a game-ready representation of your Asset internally, matching your chosen import settings. If you modify the import settings for an Asset, or make a change to the source file in the Asset folder, that causes Unity to re-import the Asset again to reflect your changes.

Note: Importing native 3D formats requires that the 3D modeling software be installed on the same computer as Unity. This is because Unity uses the 3D modeling software’s FBX Exporter plug-in to read the file. Alternatively, you can directly export as FBX from your application and save into the Projects folder.

Standard Assets

Unity ships with multiple Standard AssetsA collection of useful assets supplied with Unity. Unity ships with multiple Standard Asset such as 2D, Cameras, Characters, CrossPlatformInput, Effects, Environment, ParticleSystems, Prototyping, Utility, and Vehicles. More info
See in Glossary. These are collections of Assets that most Unity customers use. These include: 2D, CamerasA component which creates an image of a particular viewpoint in your scene. The output is either drawn to the screen or captured as a texture. More info
See in Glossary, Characters, CrossPlatformInput, Effects, Environment, ParticleSystems, Prototyping, Utility, and Vehicles.

To transfer Standard Assets in and out of Projects, Unity uses Asset packagesA collection of files and data from Unity Projects, or elements of Projects, which are compressed and stored in one file, similar to Zip files. Asset packages are a handy way of sharing and re-using Unity Projects and collections of Assets. More info
See in Glossary, available on the Unity Asset StoreA growing library of free and commercial assets created by Unity and members of the community. Offers a wide variety of assets, from textures, models and animations to whole Project examples, tutorials and Editor extensions. More info
See in Glossary. Asset packages allow you to share and re-use Unity Projects and collections of Assets.

NOTE: If you chose not to install Standard Assets when you installed Unity, you can download them from the Asset Store.

Assets in the Unity Package Manager

You can install a wide range of Assets, including plug-ins, tools, and libraries directly into Unity through the Unity Package Manager (UPM). These are a new type of package, and are available through the Packages window. For more information about packages in general, see the PackagesPackages are collections of Assets to be shared and re-used in Unity. There are two types of packages supported in Unity: Asset packages and packages available through the Unity Package Manager (UPM). Packages available through the Unity Package Manager are a fundamental method of delivering Unity functionality. More info
See in Glossary documentation.

• 2018–04–11 Page amended with limited editorial review