Organising your messy code

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Wednesday, February 01, 2026

Look, we've all been there. You open up a script you write two weeks ago and it's just chaos. Variables everywhere, functions doing ten different things, and you have no idea what past-you was thinking. I'm here to fix that. This guide is everything I have learnt over the years, including some tips and tricks I've been gatekeeping.

Structure: Where does everything go?

First things first, you need a good structure where your scripts actually live. Don't just throw everything in ServerScriptService and call it a day.

Here's what works pretty well:

ServerScriptService is for your server-side scripts obviously, but organise them into folders. I usually have folders like "PlayerData", "Combat" and "Systems". If a script is handling player stats, it goes in PlayerData. Combat Mechanics? Combat Folder. You get the idea.

Replicated Storage is your friend for things both the server and client need to access. Put your ModuleScripts here, especially if they're utility functions or shared data. I keep folders like "Modules", "Assets", and "Events" (for RemoteEvents and RemoteFunctions).

StarterPlayer is where your LocalScripts go, specifically in StarterPlayerScripts. Same deal, use folders to group related functionality. UI scripts in one folder, camera scripts in another, TopBarPlus handling in another.

The key is consistency. Once you pick a structure you like, stick with it. Your future self will thank you.

Styling: Make your code simple and easy to read

This isn't about making your code pretty for fun (though that's a nice bonus). It's about being able to actually understand what you wrote.

Name things properly. None of this "x", "temp" or "thing2" bullshit. If it's a variable holding player health, call it PlayerHealth or currentHealth. Functions should be verbs like "UpdateHealth" or "CheckInventory". It takes two extra seconds to type a real name.

Use local variables. Seriously, almost everything should be local unless you specifically need it to be global. It's faster and prevents weird bugs where scripts mess with each other's variables.

Comments are good, but don't overdo it. You don't need to comment every single line. Comment the WHY, and not the WHAT. If someone reading your code can't tell that "player.Health = 0" sets health to zero, they've got bigger problems. But if you're doing something weird or non-obvious, explain why you're doing it that way.

Spacing matters. But blank lines between different sections of your code. Group related stuff together. It's like paragraphs in writing, it makes everything easier to follow.

Here's a quick example:

-- Bad
local function f(p,d)
local h=p.Character:FindFirstChild("Humanoid")
if h then h.Health=h.Health-d end
end

-- Good
local function DamagePlayer(player, damageAmount)
    local character = player.Character
    if not character then return end
    
    local humanoid = character:FindFirstChild("Humanoid")
    if humanoid then
        humanoid.Health = humanoid.Health - damageAmount
    end
end

See the difference? The second one you can actually read.

Services: Get them once, use them everywhere

At the top of your script, grab all the services you need right away. Don't scatter GetService calls throughout your code.

local Players = game:GetService("Players")
local ReplicatedStorage = game:GetService("ReplicatedStorage")
local TweenService = game:GetService("TweenService")
local RunService = game:GetService("RunService")

Put them into alphabetical order if you want to be extra organised. The important thing is they're all in one place at the top.

And for the love of all that is holy, use GetService. Don't do game.Players or game.Workspace. It's slower and can break in weird edge cases.

ModuleScripts: Your new best friend

If you're not using ModuleScripts, you're making life harder than it needs to be. They're perfect for code you want to reuse across multiple scripts.

Common things to put in modules:

  • Utility functions (math helpers, table functions, etc.)
  • Configuration/settings
  • Shared data structures
  • Class-like objects

A simple module looks like this:

local MathUtils = {}

function MathUtils.Round(number, decimalPlaces)
    local mult = 10^(decimalPlaces or 0)
    return math.floor(number * mult + 0.5) / mult
end

function MathUtils.Clamp(number, min, max)
    return math.max(min, math.min(max, number))
end

return MathUtils

Then in any other script, you just:

local MathUtils = require(ReplicatedStorage.Modules.MathUtils)
local rounded = MathUtils.Round(3.14159, 2) -- 3.14

Way cleaner than copying the same functions into every script.

Handling Events properly

When you're connecting to events, clean up after yourself. Especially in LocalScripts that deal with the player's character, because characters respawn and you don't want a million connections piling up.

local connections = {}

local function setupCharacter(character)
    -- Clean up old connections
    for _, connection in connections do
        connection:Disconnect()
    end
    connections = {}
    
    local humanoid = character:WaitForChild("Humanoid")
    
    connections[1] = humanoid.Died:Connect(function()
        print("Player died!")
    end)
end

player.CharacterAdded:Connect(setupCharacter)
if player.Character then
    setupCharacter(player.Character)
end

Communication: RemoteEvents and RemoteFunctions

Keep all your RemoteEvents and RemoteFunctions organized in ReplicatedStorage, preferably in a folder. Name them clearly based on what they do. On the server side, put all your event handlers in one place or at least group them logically. Don't scatter them across twenty different scripts unless you have a really good reason.

-- Server
local ReplicatedStorage = game:GetService("ReplicatedStorage")
local RemoteEvents = ReplicatedStorage:WaitForChild("RemoteEvents")

local DamageEvent = RemoteEvents:WaitForChild("DamageEvent")

DamageEvent.OnServerEvent:Connect(function(player, targetPlayer, damage)
    -- Validate and handle damage
end)

Quick security tip: ALWAYS validate data from the client. Never trust that the client is sending you correct information. Players can exploit RemoteEvents to send whatever they want.

Constants and Configuration

Put magic numbers and strings into constants at the top of your script. If you're using the same value multiple times, make it a variable.

-- Bad
wait(3)
-- later in code
wait(3)
-- even later
wait(3)

-- Good
local RESPAWN_TIME = 3

wait(RESPAWN_TIME)
-- later
wait(RESPAWN_TIME)

Now if you want to change the respawn time, you change it once instead of hunting through your entire script.

Even better, put configuration in a ModuleScript so you can access it from multiple scripts:

-- Config module
local Config = {
    RespawnTime = 3,
    MaxHealth = 100,
    WalkSpeed = 16,
}

return Config

Error Handling: Use pcall

Wrap risky code in pcall (protected call) so your entire script doesn't crash if something goes wrong.

local success, result = pcall(function()
    return player.Character.Humanoid.Health
end)

if success then
    print("Health:", result)
else
    warn("Couldn't get player health:", result)
end

This is especially important when you're dealing with things that might not exist yet or could be nil.

Keep Functions Short and Focused

If your function is doing five different things, break it up. Each function should do one thing well. This makes debugging way easier because you can test each piece separately.

-- Instead of one giant function
local function handlePlayerJoin(player)
    -- 100 lines of code doing everything
end

-- Break it up
local function setupPlayerData(player)
    -- handle data
end

local function setupPlayerCharacter(player)
    -- handle character
end

local function giveStarterItems(player)
    -- give items
end

local function handlePlayerJoin(player)
    setupPlayerData(player)
    setupPlayerCharacter(player)
    giveStarterItems(player)
end

Final Tips

  • Use CollectionService for tagging objects in the workspace. It's way better than trying to manage everything by name or location.
  • Learn to use BindableEvents and BindableFunctions for script-to-script communication on the same side (server to server or client to client). They're like RemoteEvents but local.
  • Consider using a framework like Knit or AGF if your game is getting complex. They enforce good structure from the start.

And honestly, the most important thing? Just be consistent. Pick a style, pick a structure, and stick with it. Your code doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to make sense to you (and anyone else working on your game).

Happy coding, and may your bugs be few and your frame rate be high.

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