Scriptable Object Database

A data management system for organizing, editing, and querying collections of ScriptableObject assets through a unified editor window and runtime API.

Overview

Managing large numbers of ScriptableObjects across a project gets messy fast — assets scattered in folders, manual inspector assignments, no central place to browse or search. The Scriptable Object Database module gives you a structured alternative.

You define an item type and a database type, create a database asset, and fill it through a dedicated editor window. At runtime you query items by name or ID. In the inspector, a dropdown attribute replaces manual asset references with a searchable selector tied to the database.

It is the foundation several other Arcane Onyx modules are built on, including Skills and Game Sounds.

How to Install

Install from the Unity Asset Store.

Unity package (recommended) — download and import the latest .unitypackage. It is self-contained: the Advanced Dropdown dependency is bundled in, so there is nothing else to install.

Package Manager (git URL) — see how to install from a git URL. Add both, dependency first:

https://github.com/platinio/Unity-AdvancedDropdown.git
https://github.com/platinio/Unity-ScriptableObjectDatabase.git#2.2.0

Getting Started

Prefer video? Watch the walkthrough. A longer written version lives on arcaneonyx.com.

1. Define your item type

Create a class that inherits from ScriptableItem:

using ArcaneOnyx.ScriptableObjectDatabase;
using UnityEngine;

public class WeaponDefinition : ScriptableItem
{
    [SerializeField] private int damage;
    [SerializeField] private float attackSpeed;

    public int Damage => damage;
    public float AttackSpeed => attackSpeed;
}

2. Define your database type

Create a class that inherits from ScriptableDatabase<T>:

using ArcaneOnyx.ScriptableObjectDatabase;
using UnityEngine;

[CreateAssetMenu(menuName = "MyGame/Weapon Database")]
public class WeaponDatabase : ScriptableDatabase<WeaponDefinition> { }

3. Create custom editors

using ArcaneOnyx.ScriptableObjectDatabase.Editor;
using UnityEditor;

public class WeaponEditorWindow : DatabaseEditorWindow<WeaponDatabase, WeaponDefinition>
{
    [MenuItem("Window/MyGame/Weapon Editor")]
    public static void Open() => GetWindow<WeaponEditorWindow>("Weapon Editor");
}

[CustomEditor(typeof(WeaponDatabase))]
public class WeaponDatabaseEditor : ScriptableDatabaseEditor<WeaponEditorWindow, WeaponDatabase, WeaponDefinition> { }

[CustomEditor(typeof(WeaponDefinition))]
public class WeaponDefinitionEditor : ScriptableItemDefaultEditor<WeaponEditorWindow, WeaponDatabase, WeaponDefinition> { }

4. Create a database asset

Right-click in the Project window → Create → MyGame → Weapon Database.

5. Open the editor window and add items

Select the database asset and click Open Editor Window in the inspector. From the toolbar use Create → WeaponDefinition to add new items and fill in their properties.

Note

Items are stored as sub-assets inside the database .asset file. You do not need to manage them as separate files.

Referencing Items in the Inspector

Use the [ScriptableItemDatabaseSelector] attribute to replace a manual asset reference with a searchable dropdown tied to a specific database:

using ArcaneOnyx.ScriptableObjectDatabase;
using UnityEngine;

public class PlayerLoadout : MonoBehaviour
{
    [SerializeField]
    [ScriptableItemDatabaseSelector(typeof(WeaponDatabase))]
    private WeaponDefinition startingWeapon;
}

The dropdown shows all items in the database with their icons. The arrow button (►) next to the field opens the selected item directly in the editor window.

Querying at Runtime

// Fetch by name
WeaponDefinition sword = weaponDatabase.GetItemByName("Sword");

// Fetch by unique ID
WeaponDefinition item = weaponDatabase.GetItem(savedItemId);

// Iterate all items
foreach (var weapon in weaponDatabase.Items)
{
    Debug.Log(weapon.Name);
}

Editor Window Toolbar Actions

Action	Description
Create	Add a new item of any registered subtype
Duplicate Selected Item	Clone the currently selected item
Remove Selected Item	Delete the selected item
Copy To	Clone items into a different database
Move Up / Move Down	Reorder items in the list
Migrate IDs	Upgrade items from legacy numeric IDs to GUID format
Save	Persist all changes to disk

Dependencies

Scriptable Object Database depends on Unity-AdvancedDropdown. The .unitypackage release bundles it automatically; if you clone the repository or install via git URL, add Advanced Dropdown as well.