Why does my Cinemachine 3rd Person camera clip into walls?

3rd Person Follow does not avoid collisions by default. Add a CinemachineDecollider extension to pull the camera in when something blocks the line from the player. Set CameraRadius to roughly the camera's near-clip plane size.

How do I keep camera smooth while colliding?

On the CinemachineDecollider, raise Damping to 0.3-0.5 so the camera transitions smoothly when entering/exiting collision. Too low feels snappy; too high lags behind walls and shows clipping briefly.

What layers should the decollider check?

Set the CollideAgainst layer mask to your environment layer (Default, Walls, Static, etc). Exclude character or trigger layers so the camera does not push away from the player itself or invisible volumes.

Fix: Unity Cinemachine Third Person Follow Clipping Walls

Quick answer: Add a CinemachineDecollider extension to the third-person virtual camera. Set CollideAgainst to your environment layer mask, CameraRadius to ~0.2–0.5, and Damping to 0.3–0.5 for smooth transitions in and out of collision.

Here is how to fix Unity Cinemachine 3rd Person Follow camera clipping into walls when the player backs up against geometry. The default 3rd Person Follow component does not avoid collisions; you need to add a Decollider extension to pull the camera in when something is in the way.

The Symptom

Player walks toward a wall. Camera, sitting behind the player, moves through the wall and renders the inside or void. View becomes unusable until the player moves away.

What Causes This

No collision avoidance. 3rd Person Follow positions the camera at a fixed offset behind the player without checking for obstacles.

Collider mask wrong. If you add the Decollider but exclude environment layers, no collision is detected.

Camera radius too small. Detection uses a sphere of CameraRadius. If 0, only a point check is made; misses thin walls.

The Fix

Step 1: Add the Decollider extension. Select your CinemachineCamera. Click Add Extension → CinemachineDecollider.

Step 2: Configure the Decollider.

// Inspector values
CollideAgainst         = Default | Walls | Static
IgnoreTag              = "Player"
CameraRadius           = 0.3
Strategy               = PullCameraForward
Damping                = 0.4
SmoothingTime          = 0.2

Step 3: Match CameraRadius to near-clip plane. The camera's near clip plane is typically 0.1 to 0.3. Set Decollider radius slightly larger to avoid sub-near-clip clipping.

Step 4: Tune damping. 0.3 feels responsive without snap. 0.5 is more cinematic but visibly lags behind player motion. Test with rapid movement near walls.

Step 5: Tag invisible triggers to exclude. Trigger volumes for gameplay (sound zones, dialog triggers) should not push the camera. Tag them and set IgnoreTag, or place them on a layer not in CollideAgainst.

Avoiding Pop-Through

For very thin walls, the Decollider can briefly pop through during fast movement. Increase CameraRadius slightly or set Strategy to PreserveCameraHeight to keep vertical position stable while pulling forward.

“Decollider extension. Match radius to near-clip. Damping 0.3-0.5. Camera stays out of walls.”

Related Issues

For Cinemachine confiner jitter, see Confiner Jitter. For impulse listener, see Impulse Listener.

Decollider added. Layers right. Radius matches near clip. The wall stays outside.