Raspberry Pi Game Streaming: Steam Link Alternative with Pi

Did you know your Raspberry Pi can serve as a capable game streaming client—often outperforming the official Steam Link hardware at a fraction of the cost? With tools like Moonlight and Sunshine, you can stream PC games at 1080p 60fps (or even 4K on Pi 5) from your gaming PC to any TV or monitor in your home, all through your local network.

Whether Valve’s Steam Link hardware is out of stock, overpriced in India, or simply not flexible enough for your setup, the Raspberry Pi delivers a highly customisable open-source alternative. This guide walks you through everything—from choosing the right Pi model to configuring your streaming stack for the lowest latency possible.

Table of Contents

• Why Use Raspberry Pi for Game Streaming?
• Hardware Requirements
• Moonlight vs Steam Link: What’s the Difference?
• Setting Up Sunshine on Your Gaming PC
• Installing Moonlight on Raspberry Pi
• Optimising for Low Latency
• Advanced Options and Tips
• Frequently Asked Questions

Why Use Raspberry Pi for Game Streaming?

The Steam Link hardware was discontinued in 2019. While the Steam Link app runs on Android and smart TVs, it doesn’t work on every device, and the Linux client is essentially dead. Enter the Raspberry Pi—a compact, affordable SBC that runs full Linux, has hardware video decoding, and connects to your TV via HDMI.

Here’s what makes Pi streaming compelling for Indian gamers:

• No subscription cost: Moonlight and Sunshine are both free and open-source.
• Hardware H.264/H.265 decoding: The Pi 4 and Pi 5 use dedicated video decode blocks, keeping CPU usage low during streaming.
• Wired Ethernet support: Plug directly into your router for sub-20ms network latency.
• Multi-room flexibility: Run Pi units in multiple rooms for whole-home streaming—far cheaper than buying multiple Steam Links or NVIDIA Shield devices.
• Controller compatibility: Any USB or Bluetooth controller (Xbox, PS5 DualSense, 8BitDo) works out of the box with Moonlight.

Hardware Requirements

Before diving into software, make sure you have the right hardware on both ends of the stream.

On the Raspberry Pi Side

• Raspberry Pi 4 (4GB or 8GB) or Pi 5 (4GB or 8GB): The Pi 3 is technically capable but struggles at 60fps. Pi 4 is the minimum recommended; Pi 5 is significantly better for 4K or high-bitrate streams.
• MicroSD card (32GB+ Class 10 or A2): A fast card reduces OS boot time.
• Official power supply: The Pi 5 requires the 27W USB-C PSU to avoid throttling under GPU load.
• Ethernet cable: Wi-Fi works but introduces jitter. Wired is strongly preferred for gaming.
• HDMI cable + display: Any HDMI TV or monitor.
• USB or Bluetooth controller.

On the Gaming PC Side

• NVIDIA GPU (GTX 600 series or newer): Moonlight uses NVENC hardware encoding, which is the gold standard for low-latency streaming. AMD and Intel GPU support is available through Sunshine’s software encoder, though with slightly higher CPU usage.
• Windows 10/11 or Linux: Sunshine runs on all major desktop OSes.
• Wired Ethernet connection: Again, strongly preferred over Wi-Fi.

Moonlight vs Steam Link: What’s the Difference?

Steam Link uses Valve’s proprietary protocol. Moonlight implements NVIDIA’s GameStream protocol (or connects to Sunshine, an open-source host). Here’s a quick comparison:

Moonlight’s biggest advantage: it streams your entire desktop, not just Steam. You can stream Epic Games, GOG, Xbox Game Pass (PC), or any application you want.

Setting Up Sunshine on Your Gaming PC

Sunshine is the open-source server component that runs on your gaming PC. It replaces NVIDIA’s own GameStream service (which was shut down in 2023).

Step 1: Download and Install Sunshine

Head to github.com/LizardByte/Sunshine and download the latest installer for Windows. Run the installer—Sunshine installs as a Windows service that starts automatically.

Step 2: Configure Sunshine

After installation, open your browser and navigate to https://localhost:47990. You’ll set a username and password on first launch. From the web UI, you can:

• Add applications (games, launchers, desktop)
• Set streaming resolution and frame rate
• Configure encoder settings (NVENC for NVIDIA, AMF for AMD, QSV for Intel)

For the encoder, select NVENC HEVC (H.265) if your GPU supports it—it provides better quality at lower bitrates compared to H.264.

Step 3: Add Your Games

In the Applications tab, add shortcuts to your game launchers. Adding the full desktop as an application lets you stream anything. For Steam specifically, add: C:Program Files (x86)SteamSteam.exe with the argument -bigpicture for the best couch gaming experience.

Step 4: Firewall Configuration

Sunshine needs the following ports open in Windows Firewall (TCP: 47984, 47989, 48010; UDP: 47998–48000, 48002, 48010). The installer usually handles this automatically, but verify if you face connection issues.

Installing Moonlight on Raspberry Pi

With Sunshine running on your PC, it’s time to set up the client on your Raspberry Pi.

Step 1: Install Raspberry Pi OS

Use Raspberry Pi Imager to flash Raspberry Pi OS (64-bit) to your microSD card. The 64-bit version is important—it enables H.265 hardware decoding on Pi 4 and Pi 5. Use the Lite version if you plan to run Moonlight in a minimal kiosk mode; use the full desktop version for a general-purpose setup.

Step 2: Install Moonlight

Open a terminal on your Pi and run:

curl -1sLf 'https://packagecloud.io/moonlight-stream/moonlight-qt/gpgkey' | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/moonlight.gpg
curl -1sLf 'https://packagecloud.io/moonlight-stream/moonlight-qt/config.deb.txt?distro=raspbian&codename=bookworm' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/moonlight.list
sudo apt update
sudo apt install moonlight-qt

This installs the latest stable Moonlight Qt client, which has the best hardware decode integration for Raspberry Pi.

Step 3: Pair Moonlight with Sunshine

1. Launch Moonlight from the applications menu or by typing moonlight in the terminal.
2. Moonlight will scan your local network. Your PC running Sunshine should appear automatically.
3. Click on your PC, and Moonlight will display a 4-digit PIN.
4. Enter this PIN in Sunshine’s web UI under the Pairing section.
5. The devices are now paired—select your game or desktop and start streaming.

Step 4: Configure Stream Settings

In Moonlight’s settings, configure:

• Resolution: 1920×1080 for most setups; 3840×2160 on Pi 5 with a 4K TV.
• Frame rate: 60fps (or 120fps on Pi 5 for supported displays).
• Bitrate: 20–30 Mbps on a 1Gbps local network; reduce to 10–15 Mbps on slower networks.
• Video codec: H.265 (HEVC) for better quality and lower CPU usage on Pi 5; H.264 for wider compatibility.
• Audio: Stereo or surround, depending on your audio setup.

Optimising for Low Latency

Latency is everything in gaming. Here’s how to minimise it in your Pi streaming setup.

Network Optimisations

• Use Ethernet on both ends. A wired connection is the single biggest improvement you can make. Wi-Fi adds 5–20ms of variable latency.
• Use a gigabit switch if both devices aren’t directly connected to the router. A cheap unmanaged gigabit switch is ideal.
• Disable power-saving on your PC’s NIC: In Device Manager → Network Adapters → Properties → Power Management, uncheck “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power.”

Raspberry Pi Optimisations

• Overclock your Pi 5 (safely): Edit /boot/firmware/config.txt and add arm_freq=2800 (Pi 5 ships at 2.4GHz by default; 2.8GHz is stable on stock cooling).
• Disable screen compositor if using a desktop environment: Full-screen Moonlight bypasses the compositor automatically.
• Set GPU memory split: Add gpu_mem=256 to /boot/firmware/config.txt. This reserves 256MB of RAM for the VideoCore GPU, improving decode performance.

Sunshine Encoder Optimisations

• Set encoder preset to “Low Latency” in Sunshine’s encoder settings.
• Enable zero-latency mode in NVENC settings if available.
• Reduce bitrate slightly and increase quality preset—counter-intuitively, a lower bitrate with a better quality setting often looks better than a high bitrate with a speed preset.

Advanced Options and Tips

Kiosk Mode: Boot Directly into Moonlight

For a true Steam Link–style experience, configure your Pi to boot directly into Moonlight. Create an autostart entry:

mkdir -p ~/.config/autostart
nano ~/.config/autostart/moonlight.desktop

Add the following content:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=Moonlight
Exec=moonlight
X-GNOME-Autostart-enabled=true

HDR Streaming (Pi 5 Only)

Moonlight supports HDR passthrough on compatible displays. On Pi 5, HDR is enabled in the Moonlight settings under Video → HDR. Ensure your TV is connected via HDMI 2.0 or later and HDR is enabled in the TV’s input settings.

Wake-on-LAN

You can wake your gaming PC from sleep using Moonlight’s built-in Wake-on-LAN feature. Enable WoL in your PC’s BIOS and in Windows’ NIC settings, then enter your PC’s MAC address in Moonlight’s host settings.

Retro Gaming + Streaming Combo

Install RetroPie or EmulationStation alongside Moonlight, then use Moonlight to stream AAA titles from your PC while playing retro games locally. The Pi 5 handles both workloads simultaneously without breaking a sweat.

Controller Setup

Moonlight automatically maps controllers connected to the Pi to the virtual controller on the PC. For Xbox controllers on Linux, install xboxdrv. For PS5 DualSense, use Bluetooth—Moonlight on Pi supports it natively via BlueZ.

Audio Latency Tuning

If you notice audio lag, reduce the audio buffer size in Moonlight’s settings. On Pi 5, you can safely set the audio buffer to 20ms. Also try switching between Stereo and Surround—sometimes stereo has lower latency depending on your audio driver.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I stream from a PC with an AMD or Intel GPU?

Yes. Sunshine supports AMD GPUs via AMF encoding and Intel GPUs via Quick Sync (QSV). CPU (software) encoding is also available as a fallback. NVIDIA NVENC generally provides the best latency, but AMD and Intel options are competitive for most games.

What internet speed do I need for game streaming?

Game streaming with Moonlight and Sunshine works entirely on your local network—you don’t need any particular internet speed. A 100Mbps or gigabit home network is all you need. Internet speed only matters if you’re streaming outside your home (remote streaming), where a 50Mbps+ upload is recommended.

Is the Raspberry Pi 4 good enough, or do I need a Pi 5?

The Pi 4 is excellent for 1080p 60fps streaming with H.264. For H.265 (HEVC) at 1080p or any 4K streaming, the Pi 5 is strongly recommended. The Pi 5 also has significantly lower decode overhead, resulting in visibly smoother gameplay during fast-paced scenes.

Does Moonlight work over the internet (remote play)?

Yes, with some additional setup. You’ll need to configure port forwarding on your router or use Sunshine’s built-in relay (which uses STUN/TURN for NAT traversal). Remote streaming works well on a stable broadband connection, though latency will be higher than local streaming.

Can I use a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W for game streaming?

Technically yes, but it’s not recommended for gaming. The Zero 2 W lacks hardware H.265 decode and has a slower CPU. Latency and frame drops will be significant at 1080p 60fps. Use a Pi 4 or Pi 5 for a satisfying gaming experience.

Start Streaming Today

Setting up a Raspberry Pi as a game streaming client gives you a flexible, affordable, and open-source alternative to the Steam Link hardware. With Moonlight and Sunshine, you get full desktop streaming, H.265 support, HDR on Pi 5, and the freedom to play any game in your library on any TV in your home.

The investment is modest—a Pi 5 with a good case and power supply is all you need on the client side. Once set up, the experience is virtually indistinguishable from a dedicated streaming device, often with better latency and more features.

Ready to build your setup? Browse our full range of Raspberry Pi boards and accessories at Zbotic.in. We stock Pi 5 in all RAM variants, along with official power supplies, cases, and everything else you need to get streaming.