Loops

Overview

Loops are great for repeating the same command or comparison for multiple items, so they are often used with arrays.

A loop tells the program to run a piece of code multiple times. The number of times is set based on the conditions you set.

The most common loops in Unity are For Loops.

For Loops

For loops basically say, “run this code for this many times.”

The three elements found in for loops are:

1. The starting point or initialization value

2. Conditions to be met

3. How to increase/decrease the value (steps)

The value change in steps allows you to skip elements in your array (prints every fifth element, etc.).

Format:

for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++)
{
    // Do something
}

In the code above:

int i = 0 is the starting point or initialization value. in this example, we start with zero - a common starting value since arrays start with zero. i is generally used, standing for "index."

i < 10 is the condition to be met to run the code in the brackets. Here, the code will run 10 times, since, on the 11th time, i will be 10 and be false.

i++ is how much to increase the i or index value. ++ is a shorthand for "add 1" and could have also been written as i += 1 (another shorthand) or i = i + 1. This number can also be decreased. The shorthand for that would be i-- or i -= 1; The number it increases or decreases can be any integer.

For Loops are great for updating arrays and lists. Just use i (or your index value) for your index:

public Transform[] cubes;

// Moving all cubes in the cubes array forward
for (int i = 0; i < cubes.Length; i++)
{
     cubes[i].Translate(Vector3.forward);
}

For more information about Arrays and Lists, go to the link below:

Arrays