Replace object instance with another in C#

Question

In this question I would like to find out if and how this is possible. This technique would seem extremely bad practice but it seems that the API (UnityEditor) that I am using,

Answer 1

You could do that if you embed your object into another one that is used to access the object.

class ObjectReference
   where T : new()
{
    private T _obj = new T();

    public void CreateNewObject()
    {
        _obj = new T();
    }

    public T Value { get return _obj; }
}

Now you can create multiple references to an object of type ObjectReference and only change the local object. The "real" object would be accessed through the Value property

A slightly different approach is that you create a wrapper that implements the same interface as your "real" object, thus making this wrapping transparent.

interface ISomeInterface
{
    string PropertyA { get; set }
    void MethodB (int x);
}

class TheRealObject : ISomeInterface
{
    public string PropertyA { get; set }

    public void MethodB (int x)
    {
        Console.WriteLine(x);
    }
}

class Wrapper : ISomeInterface
{
    TheRealObject _obj = new TheRealObject();

    public string PropertyA
    { 
        get { return _obj.PropertyA; }
        set { _obj.PropertyA = value; }
    }

    public void MethodB (int x)
    {
        _obj.MethodB(x);
    }

    public void CreateNewObject()
    {
        _obj = new TheRealObject();
    }
}

Now the wrapper can be used as if it was the "real" object. You could also pass an initial instance of the "real" object in the wrapper's constructor and remove the initializer of _obj.