Unity - 3rd Person Adding Second Cinemachine Virtual Camera

In this Unity 3rd Person tutorial, I'll be showing how to add a second cinemachine virtual camera to allow you to switch between multiple cameras in your game. Then I'll show how to transition between the two cameras by just changing 1 number. ► Download Playmaker at https://bit.ly/3dV8JzC ► Downlo

Cinemachine makes multi-camera setups almost trivial: you keep one real Unity camera and let virtual cameras compete for it by priority. This guide adds a dedicated side-view virtual camera to a third-person free-look setup, so that when the player interacts with something you can cut to a cinematic side shot - and switching between the two comes down to changing a single number.

Step 1 - Create the second virtual camera

In the Hierarchy, add a new Cinemachine virtual camera and name it something obvious like Side View Cam. It is worth parenting your cameras under a dedicated cameras folder object - a third-person project accumulates game objects quickly, and keeping the hierarchy organized now saves real pain later. Assign the player to both the Follow and Look At fields so the new camera tracks the character automatically. Straight out of the box it will be staring at the player's feet, which is the next thing to fix.

Step 2 - Frame the side view

In the Body section of the virtual camera, reduce the Z offset so the camera sits much closer to the character, then push the X offset out so it views the player from the right side. Raise the Y position so you are not shooting from ground level. Then adjust the aim: add a small positive Y aim offset so the camera looks at the character's upper body instead of the feet, and add a Z aim offset so the framing looks slightly out in front of the player rather than dead-on. The exact values depend on your character's scale - nudge them while watching the game view until the side profile reads well.

Step 3 - Understand camera priorities

Every virtual camera has a Priority value, and Cinemachine always hands the real camera to the highest one. Both cameras start at the default priority of 10, and when priorities tie, whichever camera comes first in your set of cameras wins - not a behavior you want to depend on. Drop the side view cam to 9 so the free-look camera unambiguously owns the shot by default.

Step 4 - Switch cameras at runtime

Hit Play. The scene opens on the free-look camera because it holds the higher priority. Now raise the side view cam's priority above the free-look's and Cinemachine immediately blends into the side shot; restore the numbers and it transitions right back. That one integer is the entire switching system. Later, when the player triggers an interaction, your interaction logic only needs to bump the side camera's priority to move into the cinematic view, then lower it again when the interaction ends - no camera code, no cuts to manage by hand.