The Problem
Have you ever encountered this situation? You chop down a tree in your game, eagerly waiting for it to drop a log, but instead, the log instantly teleports to a far, distant location? This is a classic problem for Godot beginners, and its root lies in understanding the coordinate system.
Core Concepts: Local vs. Global Position
📍 position (Local Position)
A node's position relative to its "parent" node. It's like your position in a room, measured from the corner of that room.
🌍 global_position (Global Position)
A node's absolute position in the entire game world. It's like your latitude and longitude on Earth, measured from a fixed world origin.
Interactive Simulation
Click a button to start the simulation...
❌ The Incorrect Way
Set position first, then add to scene tree.
func add_log_scene():
var log = log_scene.instantiate()
# Error! `log` is not in the scene yet.
# Setting global_position has no effect.
log.global_position = self.global_position
get_parent().add_child(log)Result: When `add_child` is called, Godot sets the log's local `position` to `(0,0)` because the previous global position assignment was invalid. This causes the log to appear at its parent's origin, not at the tree's location.
✅ The Correct Solution
Add to scene tree first, then set global position.
func add_log_scene():
var log = log_scene.instantiate()
# 1. Correct: Add `log` to the scene tree first.
get_parent().add_child(log)
# 2. After it's part of the scene,
# set its global_position.
log.global_position = self.global_positionResult: When setting `global_position`, Godot knows who the log's parent is. It can then correctly calculate the required local `position` to place it precisely at the tree's location.
The Golden Rule
When you need to dynamically create an object and place it at a specific location in the world, always remember this order: