Managing what is in memory.
WHAT CONSUMES MEMORY
Textures, usually most Meshes Audio Animation data Runtime allocations
WHAT TO AUDIT
The largest assets, which are frequently far larger than needed.
WHAT STREAMING DOES
Loads content as it is approached and unloads what is left behind.
WHAT IT ENABLES
Worlds larger than memory.
WHAT IT REQUIRES
Content divided into loadable units, and prediction of what is needed.
WHAT LOADING DURING PLAY CAUSES
Frame spikes, unless done asynchronously.
WHAT TO DO
Load on a background thread, and activate only when complete.
WHAT OBJECT POOLING IS
Reusing objects rather than creating and destroying them.
WHERE IT MATTERS MOST
Projectiles, effects, and anything spawned frequently.
WHY
Allocation and collection cause spikes.
WHAT TO PRELOAD
Anything needed immediately after a transition.
WHAT LOADING SCREENS SHOULD DO
Show progress honestly, and give the player something to read or do.
WHAT TO MEASURE
Time to first playable moment.
WHY
It is a strong predictor of whether players continue.
WHAT TO TEST
Memory over a long session, watching for growth.
