/inspector

name: unity-inspector
description: Advise on Unity Inspector authoring UX

Unity Inspector Design

Documentation only: no REST skills. Use when scripts must be easier to author, configure and review in the Inspector.

When to use

• Designing a component's Inspector display
• Organizing serialized fields
• Adding tooltips or headers

Default rules

• Prefer `[SerializeField] private` over public fields.
• Use `[Header]`, `[Tooltip]`, `[Space]`, `[Range]`, `[Min]`, `[TextArea]` when they clarify authoring intent.
• Use `[RequireComponent]` for mandatory sibling dependencies.
• Use `[CreateAssetMenu]` for config/data assets designers create directly.
• Use `OnValidate` only for lightweight editor-time validation and normalization.
• Use `SerializeReference` only when polymorphic serialized data is genuinely needed.
• Do not over-decorate when simple naming suffices.

Inspector quality checklist

• Are defaults safe?
• Are required references obvious?
• Are fields grouped by responsibility?
• Are tuning values constrained?
• Are debug-only fields separated from authoring fields?
• Will another person understand the script from the Inspector alone?

Output format

• Field exposure strategy
• Recommended attributes
• Validation rules
• Authoring UX improvements
• Over-design to avoid