Several years ago, when I was relatively new to Unity, I made Camera Controller. The Standard Assets controllers are ok… but they are quite limited and I wanted something a little more like Revit/Unity Editor, an application style camera basically, but there wasn’t anything like this in the Standard Assets to my chagrin. So, what to do…? I could buy one or use a free 3rd party controller that was kind of what I wanted… or I could make my own. Of course I decided on the latter as this would be a good way to understand Unity better and boost my skills.
Well, I got it working… sort of. After a lot of trial and error and looking at code samples on the Unity API and Stack-Exchange and using a code snippet here or there with Quarternion math (which back then I found completely baffling – and to some extent still scares me) I had a semi-decent Camera Controller which did pretty much all that I wanted (with a couple of minor bugs).
However, several weeks ago, I decided to dig it out as I was building something for work, a lot of my personal R&D ends up filtering it’s way into my workplace, and my god, that code smelled worse than a fish market in a heatwave. Like most programmers, seeing code you have done that is poorly written is like having chickenpox and trying not to scratch by sitting on your hands… So, I fixed it (well, I actually binned it and started again…it was that bad 😛 ).
Free Style Camera Controller…
So, here is the new and improved version. This is the one I corrected before I integrated into the framework I’m building for work (which I upgraded again with much better features – but, of course, can’t share here)…
The features include:
- Move
- WASD as standard
- QE moves camera Up/Down.
- With Shift Key speed Modifier.
- Pan
- Pan with MouseWheel with Shift Key speed modifier.
- Can be inverted in the Inspector
- Scroll
- Scroll with MouseWheel with Shift Key speed modifier.
- Can be inverted in the Inspector.
- Look
- Look around in-place with RMB.
- Both X and Y can be inverted in the Inspector.
- Orbit
- Either orbit in-place, or if you have a selection it will orbit the camera about that instead with alt+RMB.
- Can be inverted in the Inspector.
- NOTE: I’m not sure I like this entirely and may change the way this works later with some better clamping, but it’s ok for now.
- Focus
- Like the Unity Focus F key if you have an active Selection. You can set the Focus Distance in the inspector.
- Selection
- LMB Click select GameObject and shows HitPoint marker where selected. This is also the PivotPoint/Target location for orbiting/focusing.
- Minimum Distance to Selection. If this is enabled it will stop you from zooming too close to a Selected Object. You can turn this off/on and set the min distance in the inspector.
- Inspector
- All the control settings are visible in the Inspector so you can change your settings without having to change the code.
- Events
- I have added events that are triggered when certain movement actions are performed or you have selected an object. This is useful if you want to create more responsive applications and don’t want to throttle the Update method in other classes and duplicate code. For instance, the SelectionChanged Event can be used in another class simply by listening to the Event and then responding accordingly (like showing a UI or triggering an Animation) instead of copying the same code and have the same code running twice (or more) in the same update call… just neater.
What’s cool is that you can use these all in combination. For instance, you can use the WASDQE keys and LMB to Look (and Pan) all at the same time and it will be like fly mode in most apps. I know, I know… this sounds trivial, but this was one of the issues with my old code and at the time I had no idea how to fix it…
The Code…
using System;
using UnityEngine;
/// <summary>
/// Free Style Camera Controller.
/// </summary>
[RequireComponent(typeof(UnityEngine.Camera), typeof(AudioListener))]
public class FreeStyleCameraController : MonoBehaviour
{
#region Inspector Properties
[Header("Move Settings")]
[Range(1, 10)]
[Tooltip("The move speed with WASD keys.")]
public float MoveSpeed = 5f;
[Header("Pan Settings")]
[Range(1, 20)]
[Tooltip("How responsive the Pan action should be.")]
public float PanSpeed = 10f;
[Tooltip("Ivert the Pan direction.")]
public bool PanInverted = true;
[Header("Scroll Settings")]
[Range(1, 20)]
[Tooltip("How responsive the Scroll action should be.")]
public float ScrollSpeed = 10f;
[Tooltip("Invert the Scroll direction.")]
public bool ScrollInverted = false;
[Header("Look Settings")]
[Range(100, 300)]
[Tooltip("How responsive the Look action should be.")]
public float LookSensitivity = 200.0f;
[Tooltip("The angle in which the user can look Vertically measured from the horizontal")]
public float ClampAngle = 80.0f;
[Tooltip("Invert the Look direction in the X-axis")]
public bool LookInvertX = false;
[Tooltip("Invert the Look direction in the Y-axis")]
public bool LookInvertY = false;
[Header("Orbit Settings")]
[Range(1, 10)]
[Tooltip("How responsive the Orbit action should be.")]
public float OrbitSpeed = 5.0f;
[Tooltip("Invert the Orbit direction.")]
public bool InvertOrbit = false;
[Header("Misc. Settings")]
[Range(1, 10)]
[Tooltip("The minimum distance from the target when focusing or while Orbiting")]
public float FocusDistance = 5f;
[Tooltip("The minimum distance to active selection.")]
public float MinDistanceToSelection = 2f;
[Tooltip("Toggle min distance to active selection.")]
public bool UseMinDistance = true;
[Tooltip("The prefab to use as a marker to show hit location when user selects a GameObject")]
public GameObject HitpointMarkerPrefab;
#endregion
#region Private Properties
// Selection properties...
private bool _hasSelection;
/// <summary>
/// If a Selection is active.
/// </summary>
public bool HasSelection
{
get { return _hasSelection; }
set
{
if (value != _hasSelection)
{
_hasSelection = value;
_hitPointMarker.SetActive(_hasSelection);
}
}
}
private Vector3 _target;
/// <summary>
/// The target orbit pivot point.
/// </summary>
public Vector3 Target
{
get {return _target; }
set
{
if (value != _target)
{
_target = value;
targetAltitude = Target.y;
if (_hitPointMarker != null)
{
_hitPointMarker.transform.position = _target;
}
}
}
}
// Instantiated HitPointmarker GameObject
private GameObject _hitPointMarker { get; set; }
// Panning properties...
private Vector3 initMousePos { get; set; }
private Vector3 panDelta { get; set; }
// Look rotation properties...
private float lookRotY = 0.0f;
private float lookRotX = 0.0f;
// Orbit properties...
private float targetAltitude { get; set; }
private float orbitRotX = 0.0f;
private bool _isMoving;
/// <summary>
/// Is the Camera being moved via the WASDQE keys.
/// </summary>
public bool IsMoving
{
get { return _isMoving; }
set
{
if (value != _isMoving)
{
_isMoving = value;
if (_isMoving)
{
CameraIsMoving?.Invoke();
}
else
{
CameraStoppedMoving?.Invoke();
}
}
}
}
private bool _isPanning;
/// <summary>
/// Is the Camera panning.
/// </summary>
public bool IsPanning
{
get { return _isPanning; }
set
{
if (value != _isPanning)
{
_isPanning = value;
if (_isPanning)
{
CameraIsPanning?.Invoke();
}
else
{
CameraStoppedPanning?.Invoke();
}
}
}
}
private bool _isScrolling;
/// <summary>
/// Is the Camera Scrolling.
/// </summary>
public bool IsScrolling
{
get { return _isScrolling; }
set
{
if (value != _isScrolling)
{
_isScrolling = value;
if (_isScrolling)
{
CameraIsScrolling?.Invoke();
}
else
{
CameraStoppedScrolling?.Invoke();
}
}
}
}
private bool _isLooking;
/// <summary>
/// Is the Camera Looking around.
/// </summary>
public bool IsLooking
{
get { return _isLooking; }
set
{
if (value != _isLooking)
{
_isLooking = value;
if (_isLooking)
{
CameraIsLooking?.Invoke();
}
else
{
CameraStoppedLooking?.Invoke();
}
}
}
}
private bool _isOrbiting;
/// <summary>
/// If the Camera is orbiting.
/// </summary>
public bool IsOrbiting
{
get { return _isOrbiting; }
set
{
if (value != _isOrbiting)
{
_isOrbiting = value;
if (_isOrbiting)
{
CameraIsOrbiting?.Invoke();
}
else
{
CameraStoppedOrbiting?.Invoke();
}
}
}
}
#endregion
#region Methods
/// <summary>
/// On component enabled.
/// </summary>
private void OnEnable()
{
// Get the Camera's Local Rotation as Euler angles...
Vector3 rot = transform.localRotation.eulerAngles;
// Set initial x, y rotation angles...
lookRotY = rot.y;
lookRotX = rot.x;
Target = transform.position;
// Enable Audio listener...
transform.GetComponent<AudioListener>().enabled = true;
}
/// <summary>
/// On Component disabled.
/// </summary>
private void OnDisable()
{
// Disable AudioListener so doesn't conflict with other AudioListeners...
transform.GetComponent<AudioListener>().enabled = false;
}
/// <summary>
/// When Scene starts.
/// </summary>
private void Start()
{
// Ensure Camera's tag is set to MainCamera...
if (transform.tag != "MainCamera")
{
transform.tag = "MainCamera";
}
//Instantiate HitPoint Marker...
if (HitpointMarkerPrefab != null)
{
_hitPointMarker = Instantiate(HitpointMarkerPrefab, _target, Quaternion.identity);
_hitPointMarker.SetActive(false);
}
}
/// <summary>
/// When Update called...
/// </summary>
private void Update()
{
// Check of user is selecting an object...
if (Input.GetMouseButtonDown(0))
{
RaycastHit hit;
if (Physics.Raycast(Camera.main.ScreenPointToRay(Input.mousePosition), out hit))
{
// Update the target position...
Target = hit.point;
HasSelection = true;
// Raise event to any listeners...
SelectionChanged?.Invoke(hit);
}
else
{
Target = transform.position;
HasSelection = false;
}
}
// Check if user is escaping Selection...
if (Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.Escape) && HasSelection)
{
Target = transform.position;
HasSelection = false;
}
// Check if user is using controls to Move/Pan/Scroll/Look/Orbit/Focus...
CameraMove();
CameraPan();
CameraScroll();
CameraLook();
CameraOrbit();
FocusOnTarget();
}
/// <summary>
/// Moves the Camera based on Key Press (WASDQE).
/// </summary>
private void CameraMove()
{
bool moving = false;
// Ensure user can't move while orbiting on the spot...
if (!HasSelection && IsOrbiting)
{
return;
}
// Calculate move speed...
var speed = (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.LeftShift) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.RightShift)) ? 3 * MoveSpeed / 100 : MoveSpeed / 100;
// Move forwards...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.W) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.UpArrow))
{
// Maintain min distance to target while moving...
if (HasSelection && UseMinDistance)
{
if (Vector3.Distance(transform.position, Target) <= MinDistanceToSelection)
{
return;
}
}
transform.Translate(transform.forward.normalized * speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Move left...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.A) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.LeftArrow))
{
transform.Translate(transform.right.normalized * -speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Move backwards...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.S) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.DownArrow))
{
transform.Translate(transform.forward.normalized * -speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Move right...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.D) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.RightArrow))
{
transform.Translate(transform.right.normalized * speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Move up...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.E))
{
transform.Translate(Vector3.up * speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Move down...
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.Q))
{
transform.Translate(Vector3.up * -speed, Space.World);
moving = true;
}
// Update the IsMoving property...
IsMoving = moving;
}
/// <summary>
/// Pans the Camera parallel to screen.
/// </summary>
private void CameraPan()
{
bool panning = false;
bool canPan = (!HasSelection && IsOrbiting) ? false : true;
// Panning Started...
if (Input.GetMouseButtonDown(2) && canPan)
{
initMousePos = Input.mousePosition;
panning = true;
}
// While Panning...
if (Input.GetMouseButton(2) && canPan)
{
// Calculate Pan delta between frames...
panDelta = (Input.mousePosition - initMousePos);
// If pan is inverted, reverse vector...
panDelta = (PanInverted) ? panDelta = panDelta * -1 : panDelta;
// Calculate Speed multiplier...
var speed = (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.LeftShift) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.RightShift)) ? PanSpeed / 1000 * 3 : PanSpeed / 1000;
// Translate the camera's position...
transform.Translate(new Vector3(panDelta.x * speed, panDelta.y * speed));
// Set initial mouse postion to current mouse position for next Update...
initMousePos = Input.mousePosition;
panning = true;
}
// Update the IsPanning Property...
IsPanning = panning;
}
/// <summary>
/// Scrolls the Camera in the normal to screen.
/// </summary>
private void CameraScroll()
{
bool scrolling = false;
// Ensure user can't move while orbiting on the spot...
if (!HasSelection && IsOrbiting)
{
return;
}
if (Input.GetAxisRaw("Mouse ScrollWheel") != 0)
{
// Get mouse scrollwheel value
var scrollValue = Input.GetAxisRaw("Mouse ScrollWheel");
// Maintain min distance to target while moving...
if (scrollValue > 0 && (HasSelection && UseMinDistance))
{
if (Vector3.Distance(transform.position, Target) <= MinDistanceToSelection)
{
return;
}
}
// if Scroll is inverted, reverse Scroll direction...
scrollValue = (ScrollInverted) ? scrollValue * -1 : scrollValue;
// Calculate Speed multiplier...
float speed = (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.LeftShift) || Input.GetKey(KeyCode.RightShift)) ? scrollValue * ScrollSpeed * 3 : scrollValue * ScrollSpeed;
// Translate the camera's position...
transform.Translate(transform.forward * speed, Space.World);
scrolling = true;
}
// Update the IsScrolling property...
IsScrolling = scrolling;
}
/// <summary>
/// Rotates the camera depending towards the screen space mouse position.
/// </summary>
private void CameraLook()
{
bool looking = false;
if (Input.GetMouseButtonDown(1) && !HasSelection)
{
// Reset pivot target position to camera's position...
Target = transform.position;
}
if (Input.GetMouseButton(1))
{
// Get Mouse X/Y values...
float mouseX = Input.GetAxis("Mouse X");
float mouseY = -Input.GetAxis("Mouse Y");
// Append axis Rotations...
if (LookInvertX)
{
lookRotY -= mouseX * LookSensitivity * Time.deltaTime;
}
else
{
lookRotY += mouseX * LookSensitivity * Time.deltaTime;
}
if (LookInvertY)
{
lookRotX -= mouseY * LookSensitivity * Time.deltaTime;
}
else
{
lookRotX += mouseY * LookSensitivity * Time.deltaTime;
}
// Ensure the value is measured in +- PI (or +- 180). Without this, the clamp below locks out at +- ClampAngle causing camera to direction to jump...
lookRotX = EnsureValuePlusMinusPi(lookRotX, true);
lookRotY = EnsureValuePlusMinusPi(lookRotY, true);
// Clamp rotation...
lookRotX = Mathf.Clamp(lookRotX, -ClampAngle, ClampAngle);
// Apply Quarternion Rotation to Transforms rotation....
transform.rotation = Quaternion.Euler(lookRotX, lookRotY, 0.0f);
looking = true;
}
// Update the IsLooking Property...
IsLooking = looking;
}
/// <summary>
/// Rotates Camera about a target point.
/// </summary>
private void CameraOrbit()
{
bool orbiting = false;
if (Input.GetKey(KeyCode.LeftAlt) && Input.GetMouseButton(1))
{
// Get X Axis Value...
float mouseX = Input.GetAxis("Mouse X");
if (InvertOrbit)
{
mouseX = mouseX * -1;
}
// Calculate rotation angle...
orbitRotX += mouseX * OrbitSpeed * Time.deltaTime;
// Rotate camera about target and set target as camera's subject.
transform.RotateAround(Target, Vector3.up, orbitRotX);
transform.LookAt(Target);
// Get updated Euler angles from transfrom...
Vector3 rot = transform.localRotation.eulerAngles;
lookRotY = rot.y;
lookRotX = rot.x;
orbiting = true;
}
// Update the IsOrbiting Property...
IsOrbiting = orbiting;
}
/// <summary>
/// Focus on Target if HasSelection.
/// </summary>
private void FocusOnTarget()
{
if (Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.F) && HasSelection)
{
// Look at target...
transform.LookAt(Target);
// Calculate new Camera position...
var t = (Target - transform.position).normalized * (Vector3.Distance(transform.position, Target) - FocusDistance);
// Move the Camera...
transform.Translate(t, Space.World);
// Get updated Euler angles from transfrom...
Vector3 rot = transform.localRotation.eulerAngles;
lookRotY = rot.y;
lookRotX = rot.x;
// Fire event...
CameraFocusedOnObject?.Invoke();
}
}
/// <summary>
/// Ensures angle is always between -180/180 degrees.
/// </summary>
/// <param name="value"></param>
/// <returns></returns>
public static float EnsureValuePlusMinusPi(float value, bool inDegrees)
{
float limit = (inDegrees) ? 180 : (float)Math.PI;
if (value < -limit)
{
return value + (limit * 2);
}
if (value > limit)
{
return value - (limit * 2);
}
return value;
}
#endregion
#region Events
#region Event Delegates
public delegate void CameraIsMovingAction();
public delegate void CameraStoppedMovingAction();
public delegate void CameraIsPanningAction();
public delegate void CameraStoppedPanningAction();
public delegate void CameraIsScrollingAction();
public delegate void CameraStoppedScrollingAction();
public delegate void CameraIsLookingAction();
public delegate void CameraStoppedLookingAction();
public delegate void CameraIsOrbittingAction();
public delegate void CameraStoppedOrbitingAction();
public delegate void CameraFocusedOnObjectAction();
public delegate void SelectionChangedAction(RaycastHit hit);
#endregion
#region Events
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera is Moving.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraIsMovingAction CameraIsMoving;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera stops Moving.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraStoppedMovingAction CameraStoppedMoving;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera is Panning.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraIsPanningAction CameraIsPanning;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera stops Panning.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraStoppedPanningAction CameraStoppedPanning;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera is Scrolling.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraIsScrollingAction CameraIsScrolling;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera stops Scrolling.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraStoppedScrollingAction CameraStoppedScrolling;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera is Looking.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraIsLookingAction CameraIsLooking;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera stops Looking.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraStoppedLookingAction CameraStoppedLooking;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera is Orbiting.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraIsOrbittingAction CameraIsOrbiting;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera stops Orbiting.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraStoppedOrbitingAction CameraStoppedOrbiting;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Camera focuses on an Object.
/// </summary>
public static event CameraFocusedOnObjectAction CameraFocusedOnObject;
/// <summary>
/// Triggered when the Selection is changed.
/// </summary>
public static event SelectionChangedAction SelectionChanged;
#endregion
#endregion
}
All you need to do with this is drag n’ drop this script onto a GameObject you want to use as your Camera (or an existing Camera) and that’s it, you are ready to go. It will add the Camera and AudioListener components as these are marked as required components, so setup free. It will also ensure your Camera is tagged as the Main Camera too.
Things you could add/change:-
- Change the input keys to be more your taste. This is the way I like it, you might prefer different controls.
- serialise/deserialise the control settings into the PlayerPrefs or your own JSON file so users can save their preferences. PlayerPrefs are very easy to use, but I prefer JSON personally.
- Update the Selection logic to allow for Multi-Select or an iterable selection you can cycle back and forth (similar to Revit) and of course you could create your own material/shaders for selected objects. If you do do this though, I would highly recommend you create your own SelectionManager class and use events in that class to drive the selection target in this script and not vice versa. It’s a much neater way to do it.
Anyway, I hope you find this useful and thanks for reading! Feel free to use and modify this code as you see fit and hopefully for anyone new to Unity/C#, you can get a feel for how to use Events, Inputs and general C#/Unity stuff. 🙂
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