Unity Pickup & Place System

A modular, reusable pickup and placement system for Unity games. This system allows players to pick up objects, carry them, and place them down with visual feedback and collision detection.

Features

• Single-item inventory - Players can carry one object at a time
• Visual feedback - Outline effects show interactable and placeable states
• Smart placement - Collision detection prevents placing objects inside others
• Snap points - Define precise placement positions for objects
• Surface alignment - Objects align to surface normals when placed
• Modular architecture - Easy to extend with new interactable types

Installation

1. Copy the entire PickupPlaceSystem folder into your Unity project's Assets folder
2. Install required dependencies:
   • Unity's New Input System package
   • QuickOutline (or similar outline effect system)

Quick Start

1. Setup the Player

Add these components to your player GameObject:

• CameraRayController (on the camera)
• PlayerManager
• ReticleManager
• InteractableDetector
• MovableDetector
• SnapableDetector (optional, for snap points)

2. Create Pickupable Objects

Add one of these components to any GameObject you want to be pickupable:

• PickUp - Basic pickupable object
• Extractable - Object that becomes pickupable when interacted with
• Movable - Base class for custom pickupable behavior

3. Configure Layers

The system uses these layers:

• Default - Normal objects
• Overlay - Objects being carried (prevents ray interference)
• Ignore Raycast - Objects that shouldn't be detected

4. Input Configuration

Set up your Input Actions with:

• An "Interact" action (e.g., left mouse button)

Component Reference

Core Components

Movable

• Base component for all pickupable objects
• Handles movement logic and state management
• Properties:
  • isBeingMoved - Whether object is currently being carried
  • checkForStandingCollisions - Validate placement position

PickUp

• Extends Movable with basic pickup functionality
• Automatically handles interaction

Extractable

• Converts to Movable when interacted with
• Useful for objects embedded in the environment

Snapable

• Defines snap points for precise object placement
• Works with SnapableDetector to override placement position

Detection System

CameraRayController

• Central ray casting system
• Broadcasts ray information to all detectors
• Attach to player camera

InteractableDetector

• Detects objects player can interact with
• Shows visual feedback (outline, reticle)
• Handles interaction input

MovableDetector

• Manages object placement while carrying
• Validates placement positions
• Shows placement preview

SnapableDetector

• Detects available snap points
• Overrides placement position when near snap points

Managers

PlayerManager

• Manages player inventory (single item)
• Tracks currently carried object

ReticleManager

• UI feedback system
• Shows different reticle states based on interaction

Usage Examples

Basic Pickupable Object

// Just add the PickUp component to any GameObject with a Collider
GameObject cube = GameObject.CreatePrimitive(PrimitiveType.Cube);
cube.AddComponent<PickUp>();

Custom Pickupable with Special Behavior

public class MagicOrb : Movable
{
    public override void StartMoving()
    {
        base.StartMoving();
        // Add glow effect while carrying
        GetComponent<Light>().enabled = true;
    }
    
    public override void StopMoving()
    {
        base.StopMoving();
        // Remove glow when placed
        GetComponent<Light>().enabled = false;
    }
}

Extractable Object

// For objects that need to be "pulled out" before picking up
GameObject embeddedGem = new GameObject("Gem");
embeddedGem.AddComponent<Extractable>();

Creating Snap Points

// Add Snapable component to define placement positions
GameObject pedestalTop = new GameObject("Pedestal Snap Point");
pedestalTop.AddComponent<Snapable>();

Customization

Visual Feedback

The system uses outline effects by default. To use your own:

1. Modify the outline code in Interactable.cs
2. Replace QuickOutline references with your system

Interaction Distance

Adjust max interaction distance in:

• InteractableDetector.maxDistance
• MovableDetector placement distance

Layer Configuration

Change layer names in the scripts if your project uses different layers

Architecture Overview

Player Input → CameraRayController → Detectors → Object Components
                                         ↓
                                   Visual Feedback
                                         ↓
                                   State Changes

Troubleshooting

Objects fall through floor when placed

• Ensure objects have colliders
• Check layer settings

Can't pick up objects

• Verify InteractableDetector is on player
• Check object has Interactable-derived component
• Ensure object is on correct layer

Visual feedback not showing

• Install outline effect package
• Check outline component references

Dependencies

• Unity 2020.3 or newer
• Unity's New Input System
• Outline effect system (QuickOutline or similar)

License

This system was extracted from the Picturesque game project. Feel free to use and modify for your own projects.