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Unity Manual / Working In Unity / Basics / 2D or 3D Projects

2D or 3D Projects
A 3D games space has width, height, and depth (known as planes X,
Y, and Z, respectively), while a 2D games space has only width and
height (planes X and Y, respectively).

A 2D project (left) and 3D project (right)

When you create a project in Unity, you can decide whether it is 2D or

3D mode. The mode determines some settings for the Unity Editor.
These settings are are listed below in 2D vs 3D Mode Settings.

You can swap between 2D or 3D mode at any time, regardless of the

mode you set when you created your project. See Switching
Between 3D and 2D Modes below. Some projects use both 2D and
3D elements and are sometimes known as 2.5D.

This manual is a guide to creating projects in 3D and 2D but has some

specific pages for 2D project development. See Useful 2D Project
Information below.

Switching Between 3D and 2D

Modes
To change modes between 2D or 3D mode:

1. Bring up to the Editor Settings Inspector, via the

Edit>Project Settings>Editor menu.
2. Then set Default Behavior Mode to either 2D or 3D.

You can find out more about the Editor Settings Inspector on
the Editor Settings page.

Default Behavior Mode in the Editor Settings Inspector sets the project
to 2D or 3D

A 2D project

Useful 2D Project Information

Whichever type of project you are working in, 2D or 3D, there are
some useful pages to help you get started. There are also specific pages
for 2D features.

Getting Started with Unity

Unity Basics
Building Scenes
Creating Gameplay
2D Overview
Gameplay in 2D
2D Graphics
Sprites
Sprite Creator
Sprite Editor
Sprite Packer
Sprite Renderer
2D Physics
Physics - An introduction to 2D and 3D physics in Unity.
Rididbody 2D - Placing a game object under control of the physics
2D engine.

2D Joints

Distance Joint
Fixed Joint 2D
Friction Joint 2D
Hinge Joint 2D
Relative Joint 2D
Slider Joint 2D
Spring Joint 2D
Target Joint 2D
Wheel Joint 2D
2D Colliders

Box Collider 2D
Circle Collider2D
Edge Collider 2D
Polygon Collider 2D
2D Physics Material

Physics Material 2D
2D Effectors

Area Effector 2D
Buoyancy Effector 2D
Platform Effector 2D
Point Effector 2D
Surface Editor 2D

A 3D project

2D vs 3D Mode Settings
2D or 3D mode determines some settings for the Unity Editor. These
are listed below.

In 2D Project Mode:
Any images you import are assumed to be 2D images (Sprites)
and set to Sprite mode.
The Sprite Packer is enabled.
The Scene View is set to 2D.
The default game objects do not have real time, directional light.
The cameras default position is at 0,0,10. (It is 0,1,10 in 3D
Mode.)
The camera is set to be Orthographic. (In 3D Mode it is
Perspective.)
In the Lighting Window:
Skybox is disabled for new scenes.
Ambient Source is set to Color. (With the color set as a dark
grey: RGB: 54, 58, 66.)
Precomputed Realtime GI is set to off.
Baked GI is set to off.
Auto-Building set to off.

In 3D Project Mode:
Any images you import are NOT assumed to be 2D images
(Sprites).
The Sprite Packer is disabled.
The Scene View is set to 3D.
The default game objects have real time, directional light.
The cameras default position is at 0,1,10. (It is 0,0,10. in 2D
Mode.)
The camera is set to be Perspective. (In 2D Mode it is
Orthographic.)
In the Lighting Window:
Skybox is the built-in default Skybox Material.
Ambient Source is set to Skybox.
Precomputed Realtime GI is set to on.
Baked GI is set to on.
Auto-Building is set to on.

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