This module is part of the Unity Essentials ecosystem and follows the same lightweight, editor-first approach. Unity Essentials is a lightweight, modular set of editor utilities and helpers that streamline Unity development. It focuses on clean, dependency-free tools that work well together.

All utilities are under the UnityEssentials namespace.

using UnityEssentials;

Install the Unity Essentials entry package via Unity's Package Manager, then install modules from the Tools menu.

• Add the entry package (via Git URL)

  • Window → Package Manager
  • "+" → "Add package from git URL…"
  • Paste: https://github.com/EggyStudio/UnityEssentials.git

• Install or update Unity Essentials packages

  • Tools → Install & Update UnityEssentials
  • Install all or select individual modules; run again anytime to update

Quick overview: Typed, deterministic asset lookup for runtime addressable first loader, with optional caching. Includes an editor spawner that finds and unpacks prefabs by name.

AssetResolver exists to make asset access consistent across your project:

• One call site (AssetResolver.TryGet<T>(...)) instead of scattered Addressables/Resources code
• An opt-in cache to avoid repeat loads and reduce stalls
• Safe handling of Addressables handles (including domain reload invalidation)

• Runtime asset lookup
  • AssetResolver.TryGet<T>(keyOrPath) returns null on failure
  • Tries Addressables first, then optional Resources fallback
• Runtime prefab instantiation
  • AssetResolver.InstantiatePrefab(keyOrPath, name, parent)
  • Intended for play mode / builds
• Optional caching
  • Cache loaded assets by key/path
  • Background preload helper (Preload<T>) to reduce later stalls
• Editor prefab spawner helper
  • AssetResolverEditor.InstantiatePrefab(keyOrPath, name, parent)
  • Loads via runtime resolver for parity, instantiates via PrefabUtility for proper prefab connections + Undo
  • Editor-only convenience fallback to AssetDatabase search by name

• Unity 6000.0+
• Addressables package (for Addressables resolving)
• Optional: Resources folder usage for fallback

// Addressables key/address/label OR Resources path
var shader = AssetResolver.TryGet<ComputeShader>("UnityEssentials_Shader_CameraLuminance");
if (!shader)
{
    // handle missing
}

// Starts a background Addressables load (then Resources fallback) and stores into cache when done.
AssetResolver.Preload<GameObject>("UnityEssentials_Prefab_SplashScreen");

var instance = AssetResolver.InstantiatePrefab(
    keyOrPath: "UnityEssentials_Prefab_SplashScreen",
    name: "SplashScreen",
    parent: null);

#if UNITY_EDITOR
using UnityEssentials;
using UnityEngine;

// Spawns into the open scene, registers Undo, and selects the created instance.
// Resolution: Addressables -> Resources -> AssetDatabase (name search).
AssetResolverEditor.InstantiatePrefab(
    keyOrPath: "UnityEssentials_Prefab_SplashScreen",
    name: "SplashScreen",
    parent: null);
#endif

• Resolution order
  • TryGet<T>: Addressables → (optional) Resources
  • Editor spawner: runtime resolver first (Addressables/Resources) → AssetDatabase fallback
• Addressables safety
  • Operation handles can become invalid after an assembly / domain reload.
  • The resolver clears retained handles on domain reload to avoid "Attempting to use an invalid operation handle".
• Caching
  • If cache=true, the loaded asset is stored in-memory and the Addressables handle is retained
  • Use Release(keyOrPath) or ClearCache() (internal) to free retained handles

• TryGet<T> is intentionally a Try API: it returns null on failure.
• If you instantiate via Addressables in runtime (InstantiatePrefab), the instance should later be released via Addressables (depending on your lifecycle); the resolver does not automatically release instance handles.
• AssetDatabase fallback is editor-only and may pick the first matching prefab if multiple share the same name.

• Runtime
  • Runtime/AssetResolver.cs – Addressables/Resources resolving, caching, preload, release
• Editor
  • Editor/AssetResolverEditor.cs – Prefab spawning helper (undo/selection) using runtime resolver

unity, addressables, resources, asset loading, caching, prefab, editor utilities