All the action is happening on your main rig, with the remote device playing streamed video and relaying your commands back to the mothership. With Steam Link, you can enjoy your PC games on the big screen TV.īy now, you may have figured out that with Steam In-Home Streaming, your remote PC is really acting as a kind of remote desktop client. If you want to dig even deeper, PCWorld’s comprehensive guide to Steam In-Home Streaming can walk you through the technology’s nitty-gritty details. A good-quality, modern AC wireless network should be able to handle a AAA title with ease, but as I mentioned earlier, you can’t beat a cable. Lowering frame rates and resolution reduces the amount of data that needs to be captured and streamed, which should mitigate latency.
Witcher 3 on an iMac? No problem with Steam In-Home Streaming.įor a quick bump in streaming quality, reduce the game’s graphics settings. Once you have your network in place and performing well, you can check out the game streaming services themselves. But, be sure your service plan includes generous allowances, as game streaming will quickly chew through data. A slightly slower, but more convenient option is the D-Link DWA-192 3×3 AC1900 adapter ($70 on Amazon), which connects via USB.įor true remote gaming, let’s not forget mobile 4G LTE connections, which can do a fantastic job with remote streaming. If your remote PC is a desktop and its wireless adapter isn’t performing well, then consider upgrading to a modern, high-end model such as the ASUS PCE-AC88 4×4 AC3100 adapter ($109 on Amazon), which can be installed in a spare PCIe slot on your motherboard. If you opt for a wireless configuration, be sure to select the faster (but shorter range) 5GHz networking band on your router over the slower, longer-range 2.4GHz option.
Wi-Fi or Powerline adapters can also do the job, but performance will vary from home to home. The quality of your PC game-streaming experience relies heavily on your home network speed. I use these adapters extensively throughout my home, with average speeds of 750Mbps-not far off Gigabit Ethernet and more than you’ll need for a game stream.