PrefabsAn asset type that allows you to store a GameObject complete with components and properties. The prefab acts as a template from which you can create new object instances in the scene. More info See in Glossary
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
Version ControlA system for managing file changes. You can use Unity in conjunction with most common version control tools, including Perforce, Git, Mercurial and PlasticSCM. More info See in Glossary
Dynamic resolutionA Camera setting that allows you to dynamically scale individual render targets, to reduce workload on the GPU. More info See in Glossary
Reflection ProbeA rendering component that captures a spherical view of its surroundings in all directions, rather like a camera. The captured image is then stored as a Cubemap that can be used by objects with reflective materials. More info See in Glossary
TexturesAn image used when rendering a GameObject, Sprite, or UI element. Textures are often applied to the surface of a mesh to give it visual detail. More info See in Glossary
Render TextureA special type of Texture that is created and updated at runtime. To use them, first create a new Render Texture and designate one of your Cameras to render into it. Then you can use the Render Texture in a Material just like a regular Texture. More info See in Glossary
HeightmapA greyscale Texture that stores height data for an object. Each pixel stores the height difference perpendicular to the face that pixel represents. See in Glossary
Particle SystemA component that simulates fluid entities such as liquids, clouds and flames by generating and animating large numbers of small 2D images in the scene. More info See in Glossary
TerrainThe landscape in your scene. A Terrain GameObject adds a large flat plane to your scene and you can use the Terrain’s Inspector window to create a detailed landscape. More info See in Glossary
Wind ZonesA GameObject that adds the effect of wind to your terrain. For instance, Trees within a wind zone will bend in a realistic animated fashion and the wind itself will move in pulses to create natural patterns of movement among the tree. More info See in Glossary
Audio ClipA container for audio data in Unity. Unity supports mono, stereo and multichannel audio assets (up to eight channels). Unity can import .aif, .wav, .mp3, and .ogg audio file format, and .xm, .mod, .it, and .s3m tracker module formats. More info See in Glossary
Audio ListenerA component that acts like a microphone, receiving sound from Audio Sources in the scene and outputting to the computer speakers. More info See in Glossary
Audio SourceA component which plays back an Audio Clip in the scene to an audio listener or through an audio mixer. More info See in Glossary
Audio FiltersAny audio filter that distorts the sound from an Audio Source or sounds reaching the Audio Listener. More info See in Glossary
Audio Low Pass FilterAn audio filter that passes low frequencies of an Audio Source or all sound reaching an Audio Listener while removing frequencies higher than the Cutoff Frequency. More info See in Glossary
Audio High Pass FilterAn audio filter that passes high frequencies of an AudioSource and cuts off signals with frequencies lower than the Cutoff Frequency. More info See in Glossary
Audio Distortion FilterAn audio filter that distorts the sound from an Audio Source or sounds reaching the Audio Listener by simulating the sound of a low quality radio transmission. More info See in Glossary
Audio EffectsAny effect that can modify the output of Audio Mixer components, such as filtering frequency ranges of a sound or applying reverb. More info See in Glossary
Animation ClipsAnimation data that can be used for animated characters or simple animations. It is a simple “unit” piece of motion, such as (one specific instance of) “Idle”, “Walk” or “Run”. More info See in Glossary
Animator ControllersControls animation through Animation Layers with Animation State Machines and Animation Blend Trees, controlled by Animation Parameters. The same Animator Controller can be referenced by multiple models with Animator components. More info See in Glossary
Animation State MachinesA graph within an Animator Controller that controls the interaction of Animation States. Each state references an Animation Blend Tree or a single Animation Clip. More info See in Glossary
Animation ParametersUsed to communicate between scripting and the Animator Controller. Some parameters can be set in scripting and used by the controller, while other parameters are based on Custom Curves in Animation Clips and can be sampled using the scripting API. More info See in Glossary
State Machine BehavioursA script that attaches to a state within a state machine to control what happens when the state machine enters, exits or remains within a state, such as play sounds as states are entered. More info See in Glossary
Animation LayersAn Animation Layer contains an Animation State Machine that controls animations of a model or part of it. An example of this is if you have a full-body layer for walking or jumping and a higher layer for upper-body motions such as throwing an object or shooting. The higher layers take precedence for the body parts they control. More info See in Glossary
Target MatchingA scripting function that allows you to move characters in such a way that a hand or foot lands in a certain place at a certain time. For example, the character may need to jump across stepping stones or jump and grab an overhead beam. More info See in Glossary
Animator Override ControllersAllows you to create multiple variants of an Animator Controller, with each variant using a different set of animations, while retaining the original Controller’s structure, parameters and logic. More info See in Glossary
TextA non-interactive piece of text to the user. This can be used to provide captions or labels for other GUI controls or to display instructions or other text. More info See in Glossary
Raw ImageA Visual UI Component that displays a non-interactive image to the user. This can be used for decoration, icons, and so on, and the image can also be changed from a script to reflect changes in other controls. More info See in Glossary
MaskCan refer to a Sprite Mask, a UI Mask, or a Layer Mask More info See in Glossary
ShadowA UI component that adds a simple outline effect to graphic components such as Text or Image. It must be on the same GameObject as the graphic component. More info See in Glossary
Event SystemA way of sending events to objects in the application based on input, be it keyboard, mouse, touch, or custom input. The Event System consists of a few components that work together to send events. More info See in Glossary Reference
Property DrawersA Unity feature that allows you to customize the look of certain controls in the Inspector window by using attributes on your scripts, or by controlling how a specific Serializable class should look More info See in Glossary
Universal Windows PlatformAn IAP feature that supports Microsoft’s In App Purchase simulator, which allows you to test IAP purchase flows on devices before publishing your application. More info See in Glossary
Unity RemoteA downloadable app designed to help with Android, iOS and tvOS development. The app connects with Unity while you are running your project in Play Mode from the Unity Editor. More info See in Glossary
WebGLA JavaScript API that renders 2D and 3D graphics in a web browser. The Unity WebGL build option allows Unity to publish content as JavaScript programs which use HTML5 technologies and the WebGL rendering API to run Unity content in a web browser. More info See in Glossary