Question

I know it makes sense to use self.name, but what does @name mean in the following code?

class NewGame < Game
  attr_accessor :name
  def initialize(name, options={})
    super
    self.name = name
  end

  def add_game(name)
     @name = name
  end
end

Is that even legit? Did I made a mistake?

Answer 1

@name is an instance variable which may be accessed like a private member of a class instance.

self.name is a method call on the self object, if it is not explicitly defined you will get a NoMethodError.

I will go forward and explain that writing attr_accessor :weight in your class is the same as:

def weight=(v)
  @weight = v
end

def weight
  @weight
end