Every class which is not a built-in type inherits from this class.
You can construct Objects from scripting languages, using [code]Object.new()[/code] in GDScript, [code]new Object[/code] in C#, or the "Construct Object" node in VisualScript.
Objects do not manage memory. If a class inherits from Object, you will have to delete instances of it manually. To do so, call the [method free] method from your script or delete the instance from C++.
Some classes that extend Object add memory management. This is the case of [Reference], which counts references and deletes itself automatically when no longer referenced. [Node], another fundamental type, deletes all its children when freed from memory.
Objects export properties, which are mainly useful for storage and editing, but not really so much in programming. Properties are exported in [method _get_property_list] and handled in [method _get] and [method _set]. However, scripting languages and C++ have simpler means to export them.
Objects also receive notifications. Notifications are a simple way to notify the object about different events, so they can all be handled together. See [method _notification].
[b]Note:[/b] Unlike references to a [Reference], references to an Object stored in a variable can become invalid without warning. Therefore, it's recommended to use [Reference] for data classes instead of [Object].
<linktitle="When and how to avoid using nodes for everything">https://docs.godotengine.org/en/latest/getting_started/workflow/best_practices/node_alternatives.html</link>
Each property's [Dictionary] must contain at least [code]name: String[/code] and [code]type: int[/code] (see [enum Variant.Type]) entries. Optionally, it can also include [code]hint: int[/code] (see [enum PropertyHint]), [code]hint_string: String[/code], and [code]usage: int[/code] (see [enum PropertyUsageFlags]).
Called whenever the object receives a notification, which is identified in [code]what[/code] by a constant. The base [Object] has two constants [constant NOTIFICATION_POSTINITIALIZE] and [constant NOTIFICATION_PREDELETE], but subclasses such as [Node] define a lot more notifications which are also received by this method.
Virtual method which can be overridden to customize the return value of [method to_string], and thus the object's representation where it is converted to a string, e.g. with [code]print(obj)[/code].
Adds a user-defined [code]signal[/code]. Arguments are optional, but can be added as an [Array] of dictionaries, each containing [code]name: String[/code] and [code]type: int[/code] (see [enum Variant.Type]) entries.
Calls the [code]method[/code] on the object and returns the result. This method supports a variable number of arguments, so parameters are passed as a comma separated list. Example:
[b]Note:[/b] In C#, the method name must be specified as snake_case if it is defined by a built-in Godot node. This doesn't apply to user-defined methods where you should use the same convention as in the C# source (typically PascalCase).
Calls the [code]method[/code] on the object during idle time. This method supports a variable number of arguments, so parameters are passed as a comma separated list. Example:
[b]Note:[/b] In C#, the method name must be specified as snake_case if it is defined by a built-in Godot node. This doesn't apply to user-defined methods where you should use the same convention as in the C# source (typically PascalCase).
Calls the [code]method[/code] on the object and returns the result. Contrarily to [method call], this method does not support a variable number of arguments but expects all parameters to be via a single [Array].
Connects a [code]signal[/code] to a [code]callable[/code]. Pass optional [code]binds[/code] to the call as an [Array] of parameters. These parameters will be passed to the [Callable]'s method after any parameter used in the call to [method emit_signal]. Use [code]flags[/code] to set deferred or one-shot connections. See [enum ConnectFlags] constants.
[b]Note:[/b] This method is the legacy implementation for connecting signals. The recommended modern approach is to use [method Signal.connect] and to use [method Callable.bind] to add and validate parameter binds. Both syntaxes are shown below.
A signal can only be connected once to a [Callable]. It will throw an error if already connected, unless the signal was connected with [constant CONNECT_REFERENCE_COUNTED]. To avoid this, first, use [method is_connected] to check for existing connections.
If the callable's target is destroyed in the game's lifecycle, the connection will be lost.
[b]Examples with recommended syntax:[/b]
Connecting signals is one of the most common operations in Godot and the API gives many options to do so, which are described further down. The code block below shows the recommended approach for both GDScript and C#.
[codeblocks]
[gdscript]
func _ready():
var button = Button.new()
# `button_down` here is a Signal object, and we thus call the Signal.connect() method,
# not Object.connect(). See discussion below for a more in-depth overview of the API.
button.button_down.connect(_on_button_down)
# This assumes that a `Player` class exists which defines a `hit` signal.
var player = Player.new()
# We use Signal.connect() again, and we also use the Callable.bind() method which
# returns a new Callable with the parameter binds.
print("Hit with weapon %s for %d damage." % [weapon_type, damage])
[/gdscript]
[csharp]
public override void _Ready()
{
var button = new Button();
// C# supports passing signals as events, so we can use this idiomatic construct:
button.ButtonDown += OnButtonDown;
// This assumes that a `Player` class exists which defines a `Hit` signal.
var player = new Player();
// Signals as events (`player.Hit += OnPlayerHit;`) do not support argument binding. You have to use:
player.Hit.Connect(OnPlayerHit, new Godot.Collections.Array {"sword", 100 });
}
private void OnButtonDown()
{
GD.Print("Button down!");
}
private void OnPlayerHit(string weaponType, int damage)
{
GD.Print(String.Format("Hit with weapon {0} for {1} damage.", weaponType, damage));
}
[/csharp]
[/codeblocks]
[b][code]Object.connect()[/code] or [code]Signal.connect()[/code]?[/b]
As seen above, the recommended method to connect signals is not [method Object.connect]. The code block below shows the four options for connecting signals, using either this legacy method or the recommended [method Signal.connect], and using either an implicit [Callable] or a manually defined one.
[codeblocks]
[gdscript]
func _ready():
var button = Button.new()
# Option 1: Object.connect() with an implicit Callable for the defined function.
button.connect("button_down", _on_button_down)
# Option 2: Object.connect() with a constructed Callable using a target object and method name.
While all options have the same outcome ([code]button[/code]'s [signal BaseButton.button_down] signal will be connected to [code]_on_button_down[/code]), option 3 offers the best validation: it will throw a compile-time error if either the [code]button_down[/code] signal or the [code]_on_button_down[/code] callable are undefined. On the other hand, option 2 only relies on string names and will only be able to validate either names at runtime: it will throw a runtime error if [code]"button_down"[/code] doesn't correspond to a signal, or if [code]"_on_button_down"[/code] is not a registered method in the object [code]self[/code]. The main reason for using options 1, 2, or 4 would be if you actually need to use strings (e.g. to connect signals programmatically based on strings read from a configuration file). Otherwise, option 3 is the recommended (and fastest) method.
[b]Parameter bindings and passing:[/b]
For legacy or language-specific reasons, there are also several ways to bind parameters to signals. One can pass a [code]binds[/code] [Array] to [method Object.connect] or [method Signal.connect], or use the recommended [method Callable.bind] method to create a new callable from an existing one, with the given parameter binds.
One can also pass additional parameters when emitting the signal with [method emit_signal]. The examples below show the relationship between those two types of parameters.
[codeblocks]
[gdscript]
func _ready():
# This assumes that a `Player` class exists which defines a `hit` signal.
If you try to disconnect a connection that does not exist, the method will throw an error. Use [method is_connected] to ensure that the connection exists.
Emits the given [code]signal[/code]. The signal must exist, so it should be a built-in signal of this class or one of its parent classes, or a user-defined signal. This method supports a variable number of arguments, so parameters are passed as a comma separated list. Example:
Deletes the object from memory. Any pre-existing reference to the freed object will become invalid, e.g. [code]is_instance_valid(object)[/code] will return [code]false[/code].
[b]Note:[/b] In C#, the property name must be specified as snake_case if it is defined by a built-in Godot node. This doesn't apply to user-defined properties where you should use the same convention as in the C# source (typically PascalCase).
Gets the object's property indexed by the given [NodePath]. The node path should be relative to the current object and can use the colon character ([code]:[/code]) to access nested properties. Examples: [code]"position:x"[/code] or [code]"material:next_pass:blend_mode"[/code].
Each property's [Dictionary] contain at least [code]name: String[/code] and [code]type: int[/code] (see [enum Variant.Type]) entries. Optionally, it can also include [code]hint: int[/code] (see [enum PropertyHint]), [code]hint_string: String[/code], and [code]usage: int[/code] (see [enum PropertyUsageFlags]).
Returns [code]true[/code] if the given user-defined [code]signal[/code] exists. Only signals added using [method add_user_signal] are taken into account.
Send a given notification to the object, which will also trigger a call to the [method _notification] method of all classes that the object inherits from.
If [code]reversed[/code] is [code]true[/code], [method _notification] is called first on the object's own class, and then up to its successive parent classes. If [code]reversed[/code] is [code]false[/code], [method _notification] is called first on the highest ancestor ([Object] itself), and then down to its successive inheriting classes.
Notify the editor that the property list has changed by emitting the [signal property_list_changed] signal, so that editor plugins can take the new values into account.
[b]Note:[/b] In C#, the property name must be specified as snake_case if it is defined by a built-in Godot node. This doesn't apply to user-defined properties where you should use the same convention as in the C# source (typically PascalCase).
Assigns a new value to the given property, after the current frame's physics step. This is equivalent to calling [method set] via [method call_deferred], i.e. [code]call_deferred("set", property, value)[/code].
[b]Note:[/b] In C#, the property name must be specified as snake_case if it is defined by a built-in Godot node. This doesn't apply to user-defined properties where you should use the same convention as in the C# source (typically PascalCase).
Assigns a new value to the property identified by the [NodePath]. The node path should be relative to the current object and can use the colon character ([code]:[/code]) to access nested properties. Example:
Adds, changes or removes a given entry in the object's metadata. Metadata are serialized and can take any [Variant] value.
To remove a given entry from the object's metadata, use [method remove_meta]. Metadata is also removed if its value is set to [code]null[/code]. This means you can also use [code]set_meta("name", null)[/code] to remove metadata for [code]"name"[/code].
If the object already had a script, the previous script instance will be freed and its variables and state will be lost. The new script's [method _init] method will be called.
Translates a message using translation catalogs configured in the Project Settings. An additional context could be used to specify the translation context.
Only works if message translation is enabled (which it is by default), otherwise it returns the [code]message[/code] unchanged. See [method set_message_translation].
See [url=https://docs.godotengine.org/en/latest/tutorials/i18n/internationalizing_games.html]Internationalizing games[/url] for examples of the usage of this method.
Translates a message involving plurals using translation catalogs configured in the Project Settings. An additional context could be used to specify the translation context.
Only works if message translation is enabled (which it is by default), otherwise it returns the [code]message[/code] or [code]plural_message[/code] unchanged. See [method set_message_translation].
The number [code]n[/code] is the number or quantity of the plural object. It will be used to guide the translation system to fetch the correct plural form for the selected language.
[b]Note:[/b] Negative and floating-point values usually represent physical entities for which singular and plural don't clearly apply. In such cases, use [method tr].
See [url=https://docs.godotengine.org/en/latest/tutorials/i18n/localization_using_gettext.html]Localization using gettext[/url] for examples of the usage of this method.
Connect a signal as reference-counted. This means that a given signal can be connected several times to the same target, and will only be fully disconnected once no references are left.
