Is it possible to create a variable with a name that is a string?

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Hello, I've searched the internet for days and I still haven't found an answer. The problem is that I want to make many different lists (potentially hundreds), but I want to create them each with a name that fits their categories. The reason I am doing t$$anonymous$$s is because I am developing a game with procedural generation, in w$$anonymous$$ch their will be rooms with different exits, sizes, and types.

listName = ""; if (exitUp) { listName += "N";

              }
              if (exitDown)
              {
                  listName += "S";
                  
              }
              if (exitLeft)
              {
                  listName += "E";
                  
              }
              if (exitRight)
              {
                  listName += "W";
                  
              }
              // The above is the exit denotation
 
              listName += sizeOfRoom.x;
              listName += ",";
              listName += sizeOfRoom.y;
              // The above adds the x value, a comma, and a y value of the room
              listName += roomType;
 
              // The above add the roomType text

For example, if I was looking at a room with exits up and down, a size of 8 by 4, and a type of StandardRoom, then listName would equal the string "NS8,4StandardRoom". If I could create a List with that name, and add all rooms that fit those parameters into it, I could then search for a List with that name when I try to spawn a specific room with those qualities.

In short, if I could somehow change the text of the string into the title of a list, that would be very beneficial.

NOTE: I have looked into unity dictionaries, and I want to avoid those if possible. The problem with them is that it becomes incredibly hard to view dictionary entries, and displaying them in the inspector is a nightmare. A list, meanw$$anonymous$$le, can be shown and modified in the inspector.

Answer 1

Based on another point of reference related to t$$anonymous$$s question, not only is t$$anonymous$$s challenging to do, if it's even possible at all through Reflection, it's also a pretty unproductive idea regardless.

In my personal tests, a Dictionary<> only offers actual performance improvements on a pretty large scale (1000+, if not more entries) compared to simple searches through a List<>, so you probably don't even need to worry about potential performance implications if you keep the checks simple enough.

With simple checks in mind, you could consider creating a class that tracks a List<> of Rooms, coupled with a string for a name. For changes made through script, you can then check all your groups and find one with a matc$$anonymous$$ng name:

 // Minimal example, including base class tracking groups of rooms
 // as well as the groups themselves
 public class MainClass
 {
     public List<RoomGroup> groups;
     
     public void AddGroup(string groupName, Room roomToAdd)
     {
         for(int i = 0; i < groups.Count; i++)
         {
             if(groups[i].name == groupName)
             {
                 groups[i].rooms.Add(roomToAdd);
                 return;
             }
         }
         // If you make it here, the group didn't exist
         groups.Add(new RoomGroup(groupName, roomToAdd));
     }
 }
 
 public class RoomGroup
 {
     public string name;
     public List<Room> rooms;
     
     public RoomGroup(string name, Room initialRoom)
     {
         t$$anonymous$$s.name = name;
         rooms = new List<Room>();
         rooms.Add(initialRoom);
     }
 }

Is it possible to create a variable with a name that is a string?

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