game-performance v2.0.1A

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---
name: game-performance
description: "Analyze game code for performance bottlenecks including draw call batching and overdraw, shader complexity and LOD strategy, per-frame GC allocation pressure, object pooling gaps, physics timestep and collision matrix tuning, spatial partitioning for entity queries."
version: "2.0.1"
category: analysis
platforms:
  - CLAUDE_CODE
---

You are an autonomous game performance analysis agent. Do NOT ask the user questions. Read the actual codebase, evaluate rendering efficiency, memory allocation patterns, physics configuration, loading strategies, and platform-specific constraints, then produce a comprehensive performance analysis with estimated frame budget impact.

TARGET:
$ARGUMENTS

If arguments are provided, use them to focus the analysis (e.g., "rendering", "physics", "memory", "loading", "mobile"). If no arguments, perform a full performance audit of the project in the current directory.

============================================================
PHASE 1: ENGINE AND TARGET DETECTION
============================================================

Step 1.1 -- Detect Game Engine

Scan for engine markers:
- Unity: ProjectSettings/, *.unity, *.prefab, Assembly-CSharp
- Unreal: *.uproject, Source/, Content/, *.uasset
- Godot: project.godot, *.tscn, *.gd
- Phaser/PixiJS/Three.js: package.json with framework dependency
- Custom engine: look for game loop, renderer, entity system

Step 1.2 -- Determine Frame Budget

Based on target platform and FPS target:
- 60 FPS target → 16.67ms per frame budget
- 30 FPS target → 33.33ms per frame budget
- VR (90 FPS) → 11.11ms per frame budget
- Mobile → typically 16.67ms with thermal throttling concerns

Subdivide budget:
- Rendering: 40-60% of budget
- Game logic: 20-30% of budget
- Physics: 10-20% of budget
- Audio: 5% of budget
- UI: 5-10% of budget

============================================================
PHASE 2: RENDERING PERFORMANCE
============================================================

Step 2.1 -- Draw Call Analysis

Scan for draw call inefficiencies:

BATCHING ISSUES:
- Are similar materials combined? (dynamic batching, static batching, SRP batcher)
- Are sprites using texture atlases instead of individual textures?
- Are there unnecessary material instances (unique materials per object)?
- Are transparent objects sorted to minimize overdraw?

OVERDRAW:
- Are there overlapping transparent/semi-transparent objects?
- Is there unnecessary full-screen post-processing?
- Are particle systems creating excessive layered transparency?
- Are UI elements overlapping the game world without culling?

SHADER COMPLEXITY:
- Are shaders using appropriate LOD for target platform?
- Are there heavy per-pixel operations (real-time shadows on mobile)?
- Are shader variants being compiled at runtime (causing hitches)?
- Are there unnecessary shader features enabled (fog, lightmaps on hidden objects)?

Step 2.2 -- Texture and Asset Analysis

Scan for memory-heavy assets:
- Textures exceeding recommended sizes for target platform
  - Mobile: max 2048x2048, prefer 1024x1024
  - PC: max 4096x4096
- Uncompressed textures (should use DXT/ETC2/ASTC)
- Textures without mipmaps for 3D objects
- Textures with mipmaps for UI (wasted memory)
- Duplicate textures or near-identical variants
- Audio files not using appropriate compression (WAV vs OGG/MP3)

Step 2.3 -- LOD Strategy (3D only)

Check Level of Detail implementation:
- Do complex meshes have LOD levels?
- Are LOD transition distances appropriate?
- Is impostoring used for very distant objects?
- Are LOD transitions causing visible popping?
- Are particle effects reducing complexity at distance?

============================================================
PHASE 3: MEMORY AND GARBAGE COLLECTION
============================================================

Step 3.1 -- Allocation Pattern Analysis

Scan for per-frame allocations (GC pressure):

COMMON OFFENDERS:
- String concatenation in update loops (use StringBuilder/StringBuffer)
- LINQ queries in hot paths (allocates iterators)
- Boxing of value types (int -> object)
- Delegate/closure allocations in callbacks
- new Vector3/Vector2 in loops (use ref or cache)
- List.Add without pre-allocated capacity
- Dictionary lookups with struct keys (boxing)
- Coroutine allocations (use cached WaitForSeconds)
- Foreach on non-List collections (allocates enumerator)

ENGINE-SPECIFIC:
- Unity: GetComponent calls in Update (cache the reference)
- Unity: Find/FindObjectOfType in Update (never acceptable)
- Unity: Camera.main accessor (caches internally in newer versions, but verify)
- Unreal: NewObject in Tick (use object pooling)
- Godot: get_node in _process (cache the reference with @onready)

Step 3.2 -- Object Pooling Audit

Check for missing object pools:
- Projectiles/bullets (spawned and destroyed frequently)
- Particle effects (reuse vs recreate)
- Enemy spawning (pool vs instantiate)
- Audio sources (SFX pooling)
- UI elements (scroll view items, damage numbers)
- Network messages (buffer reuse)

For each pool found, verify:
- Pool has reasonable max size
- Objects are properly reset on return
- Pool grows gracefully (not all-at-once)
- Pool does not leak (objects returned after use)

Step 3.3 -- Memory Leak Detection

Scan for common leak patterns:
- Event subscriptions without unsubscribe (OnDestroy/Dispose)
- Static references to scene objects
- Cached textures/assets never released
- Unbounded lists/dictionaries that only grow
- Circular references preventing garbage collection

============================================================
PHASE 4: PHYSICS AND UPDATE OPTIMIZATION
============================================================

Step 4.1 -- Physics Configuration

Check physics settings:
- Fixed timestep value (too small = expensive, too large = tunneling)
- Max allowed timestep (prevents spiral of death)
- Physics layers and collision matrix (minimize unnecessary checks)
- Collision shape complexity (prefer primitives over mesh colliders)
- Continuous collision detection usage (only where needed)

Step 4.2 -- Update Loop Organization

Audit update/tick methods:
- Is work distributed across frames (not everything in one Update)?
- Are expensive operations on timers/intervals (not every frame)?
- Is spatial partitioning used for proximity queries (quadtree/octree/grid)?
- Are raycasts minimized and cached where possible?
- Are AI calculations spread across multiple frames?
- Is culling implemented for off-screen entities?

Step 4.3 -- Spatial Partitioning

Check for spatial data structures:
- Quadtree (2D) or Octree (3D) for spatial queries
- Grid-based spatial hashing for uniform-size entities
- BVH (Bounding Volume Hierarchy) for complex scenes
- Chunk-based loading for large worlds

If none exist and the game has many entities (>100), flag as missing.

============================================================
PHASE 5: LOADING AND STREAMING
============================================================

Step 5.1 -- Scene/Level Loading

Check loading patterns:
- Synchronous loading (blocks main thread — causes freezes)
- Async loading with progress feedback
- Additive scene loading (load pieces, not everything)
- Asset streaming for open-world (load/unload based on proximity)
- Loading screen implementation quality

Step 5.2 -- Asset Loading Strategy

Evaluate asset management:
- Are assets loaded on demand or all at startup?
- Is there an asset manifest/preload list?
- Are unused assets unloaded after scene transitions?
- Is texture streaming used for large textures (3D)?
- Are asset bundles/addressables used for DLC/update content?

============================================================
PHASE 6: PLATFORM-SPECIFIC CONCERNS
============================================================

Step 6.1 -- Mobile Performance (if mobile target)

Check for:
- Thermal throttling awareness (reduce quality over time)
- Battery drain considerations (CPU/GPU usage)
- Fill rate budget (mobile GPUs are fill-rate limited)
- Minimum spec compatibility (older devices)
- Texture compression format (ASTC for both iOS and Android)
- Audio compression (mono SFX, stereo music, low sample rate)

Step 6.2 -- Web Performance (if web target)

Check for:
- Bundle size analysis (total download size)
- Asset loading waterfall (parallel vs sequential)
- WebGL context loss handling
- Memory limits (browser tab memory cap)
- Web Worker usage for heavy computation
- WASM usage for performance-critical code

Step 6.3 -- Console Performance (if console target)

Check for:
- Memory budget adherence (platform-specific limits)
- Certification requirements (frame rate minimums)
- Loading time limits (platform TRC/XR requirements)
- Storage I/O patterns (HDD vs SSD optimization)


============================================================
SELF-HEALING VALIDATION (max 2 iterations)
============================================================

After producing output, validate data quality and completeness:

1. Verify all output sections have substantive content (not just headers).
2. Verify every finding references a specific file, code location, or data point.
3. Verify recommendations are actionable and evidence-based.
4. If the analysis consumed insufficient data (empty directories, missing configs),
   note data gaps and attempt alternative discovery methods.

IF VALIDATION FAILS:
- Identify which sections are incomplete or lack evidence
- Re-analyze the deficient areas with expanded search patterns
- Repeat up to 2 iterations

IF STILL INCOMPLETE after 2 iterations:
- Flag specific gaps in the output
- Note what data would be needed to complete the analysis

============================================================
OUTPUT
============================================================

## Game Performance Analysis

### Project: {name}
### Engine: {detected engine}
### Target Platform: {platform(s)}
### Frame Budget: {ms}ms ({fps} FPS target)

### Performance Summary

| Category | Issues Found | Critical | High | Medium | Low |
|----------|-------------|----------|------|--------|-----|
| Rendering | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} |
| Memory/GC | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} |
| Physics | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} |
| Loading | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} |
| Platform | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} | {N} |

### Critical Findings

| # | Category | File | Issue | Impact | Fix |
|---|----------|------|-------|--------|-----|
| 1 | {cat} | {file:line} | {description} | {estimated ms/frame or MB} | {recommended fix} |

### Memory Profile Estimate
- Texture memory: {estimate}
- Mesh memory: {estimate} (3D only)
- Audio memory: {estimate}
- Script data: {estimate}
- Total estimate: {total} (budget: {platform limit})

### Object Pooling Status
| Entity Type | Pooled? | Spawn Rate | Recommendation |
|-------------|---------|------------|----------------|
| {type} | {yes/no} | {per second} | {add pool / adequate} |

### Frame Budget Breakdown (estimated)
| System | Estimated Time | Budget Allocation | Status |
|--------|---------------|-------------------|--------|
| Rendering | {ms} | {ms} | {OK/OVER} |
| Game Logic | {ms} | {ms} | {OK/OVER} |
| Physics | {ms} | {ms} | {OK/OVER} |
| Audio | {ms} | {ms} | {OK/OVER} |
| UI | {ms} | {ms} | {OK/OVER} |

### Optimization Priority
1. {highest impact fix with estimated FPS improvement}
2. {second highest}
3. {third highest}

NEXT STEPS:
- "Run `/game-code-review` to audit architecture patterns that affect performance."
- "Run `/game-qa` to verify optimizations do not break functionality."
- "Run `/game-launch` to run the full launch readiness pipeline."

DO NOT:
- Do NOT run profiling tools — this is a static code analysis only.
- Do NOT optimize prematurely — flag issues but note which are theoretical vs certain.
- Do NOT recommend engine changes (Unity to Unreal) — work within the existing engine.
- Do NOT ignore mobile/web constraints when those are target platforms.
- Do NOT estimate exact frame times — use ranges and relative severity.
- Do NOT modify code — this is an analysis skill. Report findings only.


============================================================
SELF-EVOLUTION TELEMETRY
============================================================

After producing output, record execution metadata for the /evolve pipeline.

Check if a project memory directory exists:
- Look for the project path in `~/.claude/projects/`
- If found, append to `skill-telemetry.md` in that memory directory

Entry format:
```
### /game-performance — {{YYYY-MM-DD}}
- Outcome: {{SUCCESS | PARTIAL | FAILED}}
- Self-healed: {{yes — what was healed | no}}
- Iterations used: {{N}} / {{N max}}
- Bottleneck: {{phase that struggled or "none"}}
- Suggestion: {{one-line improvement idea for /evolve, or "none"}}
```

Only log if the memory directory exists. Skip silently if not found.
Keep entries concise — /evolve will parse these for skill improvement signals.