Restore LooksMenu camera state

Capture the pre-LooksMenu third-person camera settings and restore them when character customization closes, so first-time customization returns to the normal over-the-shoulder view and movement controls. Also clear the saved snapshot during reset paths so cleanup still runs if the menu flow exits early.

changelog.md

@@ -42,6 +42,7 @@ For testing notes, milestone summaries, known issues, and next steps, see [`docs
 - When `LooksMenu` is confirmed open, C++ now applies chargen camera context (`SetInChargen 1` + `ForceThirdPerson`) and restores it on close, fixing first-person camera persistence during customization.
 - Looks menu camera correction now directly sets `PlayerCamera` to third-person state for several polls while `LooksMenu` is open, avoiding reliance on console-only camera commands.
 - Looks menu camera correction now configures the `ThirdPersonState` for face editing by zeroing shoulder offsets, flipping camera yaw toward the player, enabling free rotation, and applying a closer zoom offset.
+- Looks menu camera cleanup now restores the pre-customization third-person offsets, yaw, zoom, and free-rotation flags so movement controls return to normal after first-time customization closes.
 
 ### Changed
 - Weather presets store the exact `fw` console argument (8-digit hex); edit `server/world_state_presets.py` only if a preset ID fails in your console.

docs/dev-log.md

@@ -6246,3 +6246,31 @@ character setup menus using compile-safe Fallout 4 Papyrus calls, then the SPECI
 ### Next Steps
 - Run in-game first-time flow and verify C++ LooksMenu then SPECIAL menu sequence.
 - If SPECIAL does not reliably include name entry in your setup, evaluate explicit `ShowNameMenu` before or after SPECIAL based on observed FO4 behavior.
+
+---
+
+## 2026-06-28 - Looks menu camera restoration
+
+### Summary
+Fixed the first-time character customization close path so the third-person camera returns to its pre-LooksMenu state instead of staying in the front-facing face-edit view.
+
+### Files Changed
+- `plugin/src/F4TSessionLaunch.cpp`
+- `changelog.md`
+- `docs/dev-log.md`
+
+### Details
+- Added a pre-LooksMenu third-person camera snapshot before the C++ flow forces the face-edit camera.
+- Restored shoulder offsets, zoom offsets, yaw, free-rotation state, model visibility, and offset application flags when LooksMenu closes.
+- Made reset/retry cleanup restore the snapshot even if the menu flow exits before `SetInChargen 1` was applied.
+
+### Testing
+- Not run in this session (Fallout 4/F4SE runtime not available in this environment).
+- Expected manual check: after closing LooksMenu during first-time server join, third-person camera returns behind the player and `W`/`S`/strafe inputs move normally.
+- Verify in `CommonwealthOnline.log` that the flow logs `Restored third-person camera state after Looks menu.` before opening SPECIAL.
+
+### Known Issues
+- Not yet runtime-validated in-game.
+
+### Next Steps
+- Run first-time join through Vault 109, close LooksMenu, then confirm camera offset and movement controls before and after SPECIAL closes.

plugin/src/F4TSessionLaunch.cpp

@@ -33,6 +33,24 @@ namespace
 	constexpr float kPi = 3.14159265358979323846F;
 	constexpr float kLooksMenuFaceCameraZoomOffset = -90.0F;
 
+	struct ThirdPersonCameraSnapshot
+	{
+		RE::NiPoint3 targetShoulderOffset;
+		RE::NiPoint3 currentShoulderOffset;
+		RE::NiPoint3 sideOffsetCollisionBlend;
+		RE::NiPoint2 freeRotation;
+		float targetZoomOffset;
+		float currentZoomOffset;
+		float targetYaw;
+		float currentYaw;
+		float cameraHeightAdjust;
+		bool freeRotationEnabled;
+		bool zoomingInto1st;
+		bool show3rdPersonModel;
+		bool preserveRotation;
+		bool applyOffsets;
+	};
+
 	enum class CharGenPhase
 	{
 		None,
@@ -54,6 +72,7 @@ namespace
 	bool g_sawSpecialMenuOpen = false;
 	bool g_looksMenuFallbackIssued = false;
 	bool g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied = false;
+	std::optional<ThirdPersonCameraSnapshot> g_preLooksCameraSnapshot;
 	int g_spawnPollFrameCounter = 0;
 	int g_spawnWaitAttempts = 0;
 	int g_worldReadyPolls = 0;
@@ -266,6 +285,81 @@ namespace
 		return a_angle;
 	}
 
+	RE::ThirdPersonState* GetThirdPersonCameraState()
+	{
+		auto* camera = RE::PlayerCamera::GetSingleton();
+		if (!camera) {
+			return nullptr;
+		}
+
+		auto thirdPersonState = camera->GetState(RE::CameraState::k3rdPerson);
+		return thirdPersonState ? static_cast<RE::ThirdPersonState*>(thirdPersonState.get()) : nullptr;
+	}
+
+	void CapturePreLooksCameraState()
+	{
+		if (g_preLooksCameraSnapshot) {
+			return;
+		}
+
+		auto* state = GetThirdPersonCameraState();
+		if (!state) {
+			LogWarning("Third-person camera state unavailable while capturing pre-Looks camera state.");
+			return;
+		}
+
+		g_preLooksCameraSnapshot = ThirdPersonCameraSnapshot{
+			state->targetShoulderOffset,
+			state->currentShoulderOffset,
+			state->sideOffsetCollisionBlend,
+			state->freeRotation,
+			state->targetZoomOffset,
+			state->currentZoomOffset,
+			state->targetYaw,
+			state->currentYaw,
+			state->cameraHeightAdjust,
+			state->freeRotationEnabled,
+			state->zoomingInto1st,
+			state->show3rdPersonModel,
+			state->preserveRotation,
+			state->applyOffsets
+		};
+	}
+
+	void RestorePreLooksCameraState()
+	{
+		if (!g_preLooksCameraSnapshot) {
+			return;
+		}
+
+		auto* state = GetThirdPersonCameraState();
+		if (!state) {
+			LogWarning("Third-person camera state unavailable while restoring pre-Looks camera state.");
+			g_preLooksCameraSnapshot.reset();
+			return;
+		}
+
+		const auto snapshot = *g_preLooksCameraSnapshot;
+		state->SetFreeRotationMode(snapshot.freeRotationEnabled, false);
+		state->targetShoulderOffset = snapshot.targetShoulderOffset;
+		state->currentShoulderOffset = snapshot.currentShoulderOffset;
+		state->sideOffsetCollisionBlend = snapshot.sideOffsetCollisionBlend;
+		state->freeRotation = snapshot.freeRotation;
+		state->targetZoomOffset = snapshot.targetZoomOffset;
+		state->currentZoomOffset = snapshot.currentZoomOffset;
+		state->targetYaw = snapshot.targetYaw;
+		state->currentYaw = snapshot.currentYaw;
+		state->cameraHeightAdjust = snapshot.cameraHeightAdjust;
+		state->freeRotationEnabled = snapshot.freeRotationEnabled;
+		state->zoomingInto1st = snapshot.zoomingInto1st;
+		state->show3rdPersonModel = snapshot.show3rdPersonModel;
+		state->preserveRotation = snapshot.preserveRotation;
+		state->applyOffsets = snapshot.applyOffsets;
+
+		g_preLooksCameraSnapshot.reset();
+		LogInfo("Restored third-person camera state after Looks menu.");
+	}
+
 	bool ForcePlayerThirdPersonCamera()
 	{
 		auto* camera = RE::PlayerCamera::GetSingleton();
@@ -307,6 +401,7 @@ namespace
 
 	void PrepareCharGenCameraContext()
 	{
+		CapturePreLooksCameraState();
 		ForcePlayerThirdPersonCamera();
 		RE::Console::ExecuteCommand("ForceThirdPerson");
 		LogInfo("Prepared camera context before Looks menu.");
@@ -319,6 +414,7 @@ namespace
 		}
 
 		RE::Console::ExecuteCommand("SetInChargen 1");
+		CapturePreLooksCameraState();
 		ForcePlayerThirdPersonCamera();
 		RE::Console::ExecuteCommand("ForceThirdPerson");
 		g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied = true;
@@ -328,11 +424,14 @@ namespace
 
 	void RestoreCharGenCameraContext()
 	{
-		if (!g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied) {
+		if (!g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied && !g_preLooksCameraSnapshot) {
 			return;
 		}
 
+		if (g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied) {
 			RE::Console::ExecuteCommand("SetInChargen 0");
+		}
+		RestorePreLooksCameraState();
 		g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied = false;
 		g_looksMenuCameraNudgePolls = 0;
 		LogInfo("Restored chargen camera context after Looks menu.");
@@ -350,6 +449,7 @@ namespace
 		g_sawSpecialMenuOpen = false;
 		g_looksMenuFallbackIssued = false;
 		g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied = false;
+		g_preLooksCameraSnapshot.reset();
 		g_spawnPollFrameCounter = 0;
 		g_spawnWaitAttempts = 0;
 		g_worldReadyPolls = 0;
@@ -369,6 +469,7 @@ namespace
 		g_sawSpecialMenuOpen = false;
 		g_looksMenuFallbackIssued = false;
 		g_looksMenuCameraContextApplied = false;
+		g_preLooksCameraSnapshot.reset();
 		g_spawnPollFrameCounter = 0;
 		g_spawnWaitAttempts = 0;
 		g_worldReadyPolls = 0;