RayCast in Godot 4: it is RayCast3D now
By Eduardo Orellana · Updated
RayCast is called RayCast3D in Godot 4, and its cast_to property is target_position. In a Godot 4 project, RayCast.new() fails to parse with Identifier "RayCast" not declared in the current scope. Did you mean to use "RayCast3D"?.
AppImage, x86_64. Ubuntu 22.04, Debian 12, Fedora 39 or newer.
Intel or AMD Chromebook, with Linux turned on.
What Godot is checking
GDScript resolves every name when the script loads. RayCast is not a class in Godot 4, so the analyzer stops before anything runs, and because the name is in Godot's own table of Godot 3 renames, the message names the replacement.
The converter carries RayCast to RayCast3D and cast_to to target_position, in RayCast2D too. The ray is enabled by default in Godot 4, and is_colliding() and get_collider() report after each physics frame.
Reproduce it
A Godot 3 script that creates a RayCast in code, in a Godot 4 project.
extends Node
func _ready():
var ray = RayCast.new()
print(ray)
What Godot 4.7.2 prints
Godot Engine v4.7.2.stable.mono.official.ed1daf0bf - https://godotengine.org
SCRIPT ERROR: Parse Error: Identifier "RayCast" not declared in the current scope. Did you mean to use "RayCast3D"?
at: GDScript::reload (res://answers/raycast-in-godot-4/repro.gd:4)
ERROR: Failed to load script "res://answers/raycast-in-godot-4/repro.gd" with error "Parse error".
at: load (modules/gdscript/gdscript_resource_format.cpp:46)Fix it
A RayCast3D pointing down two metres, with its new property name.
extends Node3D
func _ready() -> void:
var ray := RayCast3D.new()
ray.target_position = Vector3(0, -2, 0)
add_child(ray)
print(ray.get_class(), " enabled: ", ray.enabled, ", target ", ray.target_position)
What the fixed script prints
Godot Engine v4.7.2.stable.mono.official.ed1daf0bf - https://godotengine.org
RayCast3D enabled: true, target (0.0, -2.0, 0.0)Verified on Godot 4.7.2
Both scripts on this page were run headless on Godot 4.7.2 (4.7.2.stable.mono.official.ed1daf0bf) on 18 October 2026, and the output above is what Godot printed, unedited.
Where the check lives in Godot's source: [gdscript_analyzer.cpp line 4687, the message with its hint](https://github.com/godotengine/godot/blob/4.7.2-stable/modules/gdscript/gdscript_analyzer.cpp#L4687), [renames_map_3_to_4.cpp line 1583, RayCast to RayCast3D](https://github.com/godotengine/godot/blob/4.7.2-stable/editor/project_upgrade/renames_map_3_to_4.cpp#L1583), [RayCast3D class reference](https://github.com/godotengine/godot/blob/4.7.2-stable/doc/classes/RayCast3D.xml).
Questions
- Why does my ray not update in _ready()?
- A RayCast3D updates on the physics frame. Call force_raycast_update() to read it at once.
- How do I raycast without a node?
- Query the space: get_world_3d().direct_space_state.intersect_ray(PhysicsRayQueryParameters3D.create(from, to)).