wordle/.claude/skills/gds-agent-game-dev/gametest/knowledge/unity-testing.md

Unity Test Framework Guide

Overview

Unity provides a built-in Test Framework based on NUnit for writing and running automated tests. It supports Edit Mode tests (run without playing) and Play Mode tests (run during gameplay simulation).

Test Framework Setup

Package Installation

// manifest.json - usually pre-installed
{
  "dependencies": {
    "com.unity.test-framework": "1.6.0"
  }
}

Project Structure

Assets/
├── Scripts/
│   └── Runtime/
│       ├── Player/
│       │   └── PlayerController.cs
│       └── Combat/
│           └── DamageCalculator.cs
└── Tests/
    ├── EditMode/
    │   └── DamageCalculatorTests.cs
    └── PlayMode/
        └── PlayerMovementTests.cs

Assembly Definitions

Create .asmdef files for test assemblies:

// Tests/EditMode/EditModeTests.asmdef
{
  "name": "EditModeTests",
  "references": ["GameAssembly"],
  "includePlatforms": ["Editor"],
  "defineConstraints": ["UNITY_INCLUDE_TESTS"]
}

// Tests/PlayMode/PlayModeTests.asmdef
{
  "name": "PlayModeTests",
  "references": ["GameAssembly"],
  "includePlatforms": [],
  "defineConstraints": ["UNITY_INCLUDE_TESTS"]
}

Edit Mode Tests

Edit Mode tests run in the Editor without entering Play Mode. Best for testing pure logic.

Basic Test Structure

using NUnit.Framework;

[TestFixture]
public class DamageCalculatorTests
{
    private DamageCalculator _calculator;

    [SetUp]
    public void Setup()
    {
        _calculator = new DamageCalculator();
    }

    [Test]
    public void Calculate_BaseDamage_ReturnsCorrectValue()
    {
        float result = _calculator.Calculate(100f, 1f);
        Assert.AreEqual(100f, result);
    }

    [Test]
    public void Calculate_CriticalHit_DoublesDamage()
    {
        float result = _calculator.Calculate(100f, multiplier: 2f);
        Assert.AreEqual(200f, result);
    }

    [TestCase(100f, 0.5f, 50f)]
    [TestCase(100f, 1.5f, 150f)]
    [TestCase(50f, 2f, 100f)]
    public void Calculate_Parameterized_ReturnsExpected(
        float base_, float mult, float expected)
    {
        Assert.AreEqual(expected, _calculator.Calculate(base_, mult));
    }
}

Testing ScriptableObjects

[Test]
public void WeaponStats_DPS_CalculatesCorrectly()
{
    var weapon = ScriptableObject.CreateInstance<WeaponStats>();
    weapon.baseDamage = 10f;
    weapon.attacksPerSecond = 2f;

    Assert.AreEqual(20f, weapon.DPS);

    // Cleanup
    Object.DestroyImmediate(weapon);
}

Play Mode Tests

Play Mode tests run during gameplay simulation. Required for testing MonoBehaviours, physics, and runtime behavior.

Basic Play Mode Test

using System.Collections;
using NUnit.Framework;
using UnityEngine;
using UnityEngine.TestTools;

public class PlayerMovementTests
{
    private GameObject _player;
    private PlayerController _controller;

    [SetUp]
    public void Setup()
    {
        _player = new GameObject("Player");
        _controller = _player.AddComponent<PlayerController>();
        _player.AddComponent<Rigidbody>();
        _player.AddComponent<CapsuleCollider>();
    }

    [TearDown]
    public void TearDown()
    {
        Object.Destroy(_player);
    }

    [UnityTest]
    public IEnumerator Move_WhenInputApplied_ChangesPosition()
    {
        Vector3 startPos = _player.transform.position;

        _controller.SetInput(Vector2.right);

        yield return new WaitForSeconds(0.5f);

        Assert.Greater(_player.transform.position.x, startPos.x);
    }

    [UnityTest]
    public IEnumerator Jump_WhenGrounded_BecomesAirborne()
    {
        // Setup ground
        var ground = GameObject.CreatePrimitive(PrimitiveType.Plane);
        _player.transform.position = Vector3.up;

        yield return new WaitForFixedUpdate();

        _controller.Jump();

        yield return new WaitForSeconds(0.1f);

        Assert.IsFalse(_controller.IsGrounded);

        Object.Destroy(ground);
    }
}

Testing Coroutines

[UnityTest]
public IEnumerator Attack_Cooldown_PreventsSpam()
{
    _controller.Attack();
    Assert.IsTrue(_controller.IsAttacking);

    _controller.Attack(); // Should be blocked
    Assert.AreEqual(1, _controller.AttackCount);

    yield return new WaitForSeconds(_controller.AttackCooldown + 0.1f);

    _controller.Attack();
    Assert.AreEqual(2, _controller.AttackCount);
}

Scene Testing

using UnityEngine.SceneManagement;

[UnityTest]
public IEnumerator MainMenu_StartButton_LoadsGameScene()
{
    SceneManager.LoadScene("MainMenu");
    yield return null; // Wait for scene load

    var startButton = GameObject.Find("StartButton")
        .GetComponent<Button>();
    startButton.onClick.Invoke();

    yield return new WaitForSeconds(1f);

    Assert.AreEqual("GameScene", SceneManager.GetActiveScene().name);
}

Integration Test Patterns

Prefab Testing

[UnityTest]
public IEnumerator EnemyPrefab_Spawns_WithCorrectComponents()
{
    var prefab = Resources.Load<GameObject>("Prefabs/Enemy");
    var instance = Object.Instantiate(prefab);

    yield return null;

    Assert.IsNotNull(instance.GetComponent<EnemyAI>());
    Assert.IsNotNull(instance.GetComponent<Health>());
    Assert.IsNotNull(instance.GetComponent<NavMeshAgent>());

    Object.Destroy(instance);
}

Input System Testing

using UnityEngine.InputSystem;

[UnityTest]
public IEnumerator InputAction_Fire_TriggersWeapon()
{
    var keyboard = InputSystem.AddDevice<Keyboard>();

    yield return null;

    Press(keyboard.spaceKey);
    yield return null;

    Assert.IsTrue(_controller.IsFiring);

    Release(keyboard.spaceKey);
    yield return null;

    Assert.IsFalse(_controller.IsFiring);
}

Test Utilities

Custom Assertions

public static class GameAssert
{
    public static void AreApproximatelyEqual(
        Vector3 expected, Vector3 actual, float tolerance = 0.001f)
    {
        Assert.AreEqual(expected.x, actual.x, tolerance);
        Assert.AreEqual(expected.y, actual.y, tolerance);
        Assert.AreEqual(expected.z, actual.z, tolerance);
    }

    public static void IsWithinRange(float value, float min, float max)
    {
        Assert.GreaterOrEqual(value, min);
        Assert.LessOrEqual(value, max);
    }
}

Test Fixtures

public class TestScene : IDisposable
{
    public GameObject Player { get; private set; }
    public GameObject Ground { get; private set; }

    public TestScene()
    {
        Ground = GameObject.CreatePrimitive(PrimitiveType.Plane);
        Player = Object.Instantiate(Resources.Load<GameObject>("Player"));
        Player.transform.position = Vector3.up;
    }

    public void Dispose()
    {
        Object.Destroy(Player);
        Object.Destroy(Ground);
    }
}

[UnityTest]
public IEnumerator Player_FallsToGround()
{
    using var scene = new TestScene();

    yield return new WaitForSeconds(1f);

    Assert.Less(scene.Player.transform.position.y, 0.5f);
}

CI Integration

Command Line Execution

# Run Edit Mode tests
Unity -runTests -batchmode -projectPath . \
  -testPlatform EditMode \
  -testResults results.xml

# Run Play Mode tests
Unity -runTests -batchmode -projectPath . \
  -testPlatform PlayMode \
  -testResults results.xml

GitHub Actions

test:
  runs-on: ubuntu-latest
  steps:
    - uses: game-ci/unity-test-runner@v4
      with:
        projectPath: .
        testMode: all
        artifactsPath: TestResults

Best Practices

DO

• Test pure logic in Edit Mode (faster execution)
• Use Play Mode only when needed (physics, coroutines, MonoBehaviour)
• Create test fixtures for common setups
• Clean up created GameObjects in TearDown
• Use [Category] attributes for test organization
• Run tests before every commit

DON'T

• Don't test Unity's built-in functionality
• Don't rely on specific frame timing (use WaitForSeconds)
• Don't leave test objects in scenes
• Don't test private methods directly (test through public API)
• Don't create tests that depend on execution order

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue	Cause	Fix
Tests not appearing	Missing asmdef	Create test assembly definition
NullReferenceException	Missing Setup	Ensure [SetUp] initializes all fields
Tests hang	Infinite coroutine	Add timeout or max iterations
Flaky physics tests	Timing dependent	Use WaitForFixedUpdate, increase tolerance

End-to-End Testing

For comprehensive E2E testing patterns, infrastructure scaffolding, and scenario builders, see knowledge/e2e-testing.md.

Quick E2E Checklist for Unity

• Create GameE2ETestFixture base class
• Implement ScenarioBuilder for your game's domain
• Create InputSimulator wrapping Input System
• Add AsyncAssert utilities
• Organize E2E tests under Tests/PlayMode/E2E/
• Configure separate CI job for E2E suite