Particle system keeps playing even when Looping is off?

Questions & Answers
1

Sorry for the noob-ish question but this is my first time using particle systems. I created a particle system and added a script to it. In the script, the particle system has a reference to a game object. When the game object is destroyed, I want the particle system to play for 0.5 seconds and then stop playing. I set all the required values in the particle system inspector. Duration is 0.5 and Looping is unchecked. When I simulate it in the scene view, it works perfectly. It only plays for 0.5 seconds and then stops. So nothing wrong there. But when I play it in the game view, the particle system keeps looping after the game object is destroyed. Here’s the script that I added to the particle system:

    GameObject theGameObject;
	ParticleSystem particleSystem;

	void Start () {

		theGameObject = GameObject.FindGameObjectWithTag ("Player");
		particleSystem = GetComponent<ParticleSystem> ();
	}
	
	void Update () 
	{

		if(theGameObject != null)
		{
			//event irrelevant to this question
           transform.position = theGameObject.transform.position;
		}
		else
		{
			particleSystem.Play();

		}

	}

How can I change the script so that the particle system plays only once after the game object is destroyed?

2

Since inside your update once the object is destroyed theGameObject becomes null and else condition runs continuously.

You can set and check a bool to play only one as below:

GameObject theGameObject;
ParticleSystem particleSystem;
bool particleSystemPlayed = false;
 
 
	void Start () {
 
		theGameObject = GameObject.FindGameObjectWithTag ("Player");
		particleSystem = GetComponent<ParticleSystem> ();
    }
     
    void Update () 
    {
 
        if(theGameObject != null)
        {
            //event irrelevant to this question
           transform.position = theGameObject.transform.position;
        }
        else
        {
			if(!particleSystemPlayed)
			{
				particleSystem.Play();
				particleSystemPlayed = true;
			}
        }
    }
3

Go to your particle system
Stop Action > Choose “Destroy”

it’ll destroy the object once its finished playing…