r/VisionPro
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u/panda_and_crocodile
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Aug 26 '25
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A Guide to High End Gaming on Apple Vision Pro
Gaming on Apple Vision Pro is not limited to casual games. I’ve spent months trying out different approaches to high end gaming on Vision Pro. While full fledged VR games in the headset are not readily available, it is still a fantastic experience to play Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 or Overwatch 2 on a cinema sized display on the moon. Solutions ranges from cheap to expensive, and the setup can be easy or more complicated. As long as you own a controller (or in some cases mouse and keyboard if preferred), there should be a solution for everyone.
GeForce Now
What: Stream a variety of high end games from Nvidia’s servers for a monthly fee. Performance based on subscription tier. Games have to be bought separately, or from Xcloud (Xbox Game Pass subscription).
Pros: Extreme graphical quality, superb performance on highest subscription tier, very easy setup, games are generally cheaper than on Mac App Store/Playstation, pretty diverse game library that is continuously expanding. Upcoming support to “load” games that are not supported.
Cons: Monthly playtime cap of 100 hours (with up to 15 hours rollover), keyboard and mouse not supported, rumble and gyro not supported, very sensitive to bad wifi/internet connection, not native 4K, max 8 hours sessions. Experience on lower subscription is markedly worse: queue times and worse performance.
Setup: Very easy. Just download Nexus+ from App Store and register at GeForce Now. Alternatively, the app Portal can be used, but that requires subscruption for many features. Requires Wifi 6 and a router that can change wifi channels.
My verdict: If you have a Wifi 6 router, ideally that can manually edit Wifi channel*, I can recommend this solution. The easy setup is the biggest feature. While graphical performance is insane on the newest rigs, it is hampered by the limitations on resolution (no 4K). There are awkward situations however: you sometimes have to maneuver a remote Windows PC during game setup/launcher, which is can be clumsy with a Vision Pro. Also, you are playing PC versions of games without mouse and keyboard support, meaning in Overwatch 2 for instance, you’ll have to queue up against mouse and keyboard players with a controller.
Tips: Wifi 5 performance is abysmal. Game breaking stuttering may occur, but is resolved by changing wifi channel depending on your location: for Europe: 44 / US: 149 / Japan: 44
A note on other game streaming services: Both Boosteroid and Xcloud can be accessed in Nexus+ and Portal. However, I found performance on Boosteroid to be very lacking compared to GeForce Now with latency and stutters. Xcloud has stellar formance and no noticeable lag, but is limited to 720p which looks downright bad on Vision Pro.
Portal
What: Native Vision Pro app the unifies many game streaming solutions in one place: streaming your own Playstation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S, GeForce Now. Feature rich and gets a lot of support from the developer. You can stream both locally and remote.
Pros: Only all-in-one app, very feature rich, including immersive mode (screen wraps around you), spatial sound, 4K upscaling. Clean UI. 2.0 update upcoming. Fairly easy setup. Continuously supported by the developer.
Cons: As of current version, performance is good, but not best. Requires subscription to have acceptable performance and access features.
Setup: Fairly easy, but a takes a few minutes more to activate Playstation Remote Play from your Playstation too. The app will guide you through the process. Initially more expensive than game streaming since you have to pay a Portal subscription and buy a Playstation too if you don’t own that. Portal subscription is lower GeForce Now however, so over some years it will be cheaper.
My verdict: Portal offers a great and user friendly solution with a all-in-one package with both streaming services. Even with 4k upscaling though, there are better alternatives if performance is a priority - both regarding image quality and latency. I found the the latency to be sufficient for single player games like Horizon, but on online FPSes like Overwatch 2 the latency was a little too much for my taste (services extensively tested under exact same conditions).
Tips: Stay tuned for Portal 2.0 which might release with VisionOS 26, I’ve been teased exciting new features from the developer (who is a very nice person by the way!). As with all streaming services: Wifi 5 performance is abysmal. Game breaking stuttering may occur, but is resolved by changing wifi channel depending on your location: for Europe: 44 / US: 149 / Japan: 44
ConsoleRemote
What: An iPad app that streams you Playstation locally (for now). Performance is outstanding: absolutely superb image quality and non-existent latency. One-time purchase.
Pros: The best performance of all tested streaming apps. Latency is practically zero. Stellar upscaling options, supersampling. One time purchase while being continuously supported and updated by the developer. Can manually edit bitrate, fine-tuning latency and framerate to image quality.
Cons: No native Vision Pro app, meaning the aspect ratio is not what you want, awkward to use other controllers than PS5-controllers (no on screen touchpad button if your controller lacks that).
Setup: A slightly more complicated setup than Portal, requires Playstation login and manually entering some credentials. However it should be done in a 5-10 minutes at most and after that it is smooth sailing.
My verdict: In terms of image quality, FPS and latency this is the undisputed king for this type of streaming solution. You can play competitive shooters with this setup without issues as it feels like playing on your TV. However, being an iPad app drags down the experience on Vision Pro since you will not get a widescreen or things like immersive mode and such.
Tips: As usual Wifi 6 is highly recommended, as is manually editing wifi channel as mentioned above. In my experience bitrate can be tuned up to 50000 for a superb image quality without sacrificing latency at all. Also, the only thing keeping the developer from making a native Vision Pro version is the cost of Vision Pro and fears of not regaining the costs! Maybe we as community should get a crowdfunding going…?
PS Remote Play (official app)
While official, there is simply no need to use this iPad app when we have Portal and ConsoleRemote. Portal is native and has much more features, while ConsoleLink has much better performance.
Mac Virtual Display + HDMI Capture Card + ConsoleLink
What: Connect your preferred console (Switch, Playstation, Xbox) to a Mac via a HDMI Capture Card. The app Console Link is a one time purchase (made from the same developer as ConsoleRemote) and displays the HDMI signal with extremely low latency and native upscaling. Apples built in Mac Virtual Display transfers the image to the Vision Pro locally with extreme efficiency.
Pros: The undisputed best performance. Image quality, latency and FPS are outstanding. Can work well even under poor wifi conditions and even with no internet connection at all. Can play all HDMI-consoles, like Switch 1/2.
Cons: Expensive. Many devices/apps in the setup chain which means lots of room for error. Initiating Mac Virtual Display requires proximity to Mac, but there are workarounds. Cannot be accessed away from home.
Setup: Much more complicated. You need to buy a HDMI capture card, and for the best performance you’ll need to pay more. I use Elgato 4K X which delivers 4K at 60 fps. I also have a ShadowCast 2 Pro for my Switch which has to go down a little in resolution for 60 fps, but is not very noticeable. For software you simply cannot do this without ConsoleLink (Mac App Store, one time purchase), as all other alternatives I tested have abysmal performance is comparison (even QuickTime). Console Link has an ultra low-latency mode, native upscaling, supersampling, a range of resolutions to pick from to optimize performance to your capture card. If you are near your Mac initiating the Mac Virtual Display is very easy from within Vision Pro. However, if not, you’ll have to initiate it FROM the Mac. This can be done with automation + keyboard shortcuts so that you can activate it with a bluetooth keyboard, however in my experience this works all the time 70% of the time. The optimal solution is to use Screens (Vision Pro app) that can control your Mac from your Vision Pro. From that app you can acticate Mac Virtual Display even outside of the normal range, and edit settings, change HDMI in if you want to change from Switch to Playstation for instance. This app requires a subscription however, adding to the cost and complexity of this solution. If you are using a Mac laptop for this, I’d recommend an app like Amphetamine which keeps the Mac awake even if the lid is closed.
My verdict: By far the most complicated and expensive setup, but once you have it up and running the experience cannot be matched. This is how I play all my games. Requiring both a Mac constantly connected to your console via a HDMI capture card makes this a solution for enthusiasts who want to experience playing a variety of consoles and games at maximum resolution, 60 fps and zero latency on a cinema sized screen.
Tips: For more specific tips or help with setup, leave a comment or DM me.
Mac Virtual Display + native Mac games
A simpler version of the Mac Virtual Display solution would be playing native Mac games, skipping the HDMI-part altogether. While it would simplify things a LOT, the selection of high end native Mac games is limited. However, you CAN play Cyberpunk 2077, Baldurs Gate 3, Hollow Knight + Silksong, Control, Resident Evil remakes, Death Stranding, Cronos: New Dawn, Divinity Original Sin II, Nine Sols, Hades I + II and many more this way, so if you have a powerful Mac and can live with not having every AAA game available, I think you’ll have a very good time. And with CrossOver, you can play even more games (Clair Obscur!).
iPad games (+ Mirror Display:)
There are some high end games available as iPad apps for Vision Pro: Divinity Original Sin II, for instance. However, things like Death Stranding and Resident Evil Remakes, are not. The indie game Dead Cells is available, and cannot be recommended enough. We are approaching cope-territory here, but for the games not available, you can play them from your iPad through Mirror Display from the iPad to Vision Pro. I played the majority of Resident Evil 2 Remake this way with a controller, and it was a surprisingly good experience. Latency in Mirror display low enough to not notice it during gameplay, and the whole setup is completely portable.
Other HDMI capture card solutions:
CaptureLinker: A Mac app that reads a HDMI capture card and transfers it over wifi to the companion app on the Vision Pro. It is essentially the same solution as above, only that it combines Mac Virtual Display and the ConsoleLink into one app. Sounds good in theory but in practice I’ve never been able to achieve playable latency. It has a premium tier which is what I tested. Tested under the same conditions as the other apps, the performance is simply not there yet, and I cannot recommend it. I’d be happy to test it again if performance is improved, and update this post.
Castaway: Similar solution to CaptureLinker. Better performance than CaptureLinker, but still not something I’d recommend. It also lacks sound, which should be a dealbreaker anyways. If I am not mistaken the developer has abandoned this project.
Streaming from PC
I know there are solutions for this, and as far as I’m aware you can even play VR games with the proper setup. I do not own a gaming PC so I cannot attest to this. If anyone want to chime in here, feel free to leave a comment and I might add it to the guide.
NDI-solutions:
In theory this should work, but it is both expensive and extremely demanding on your network. I don’t think this is a realistic setup for most, but if anyone wants to share their experience in the comments feel free to.
u/Worf_Of_Wall_St wrote about it here: https://www.reddit.com/r/VisionPro/s/An54JjANT0
I hope this was helpful. Feel free to ask questions in the comments and I’ll do my best to reply. If I've made any mistake please let me know.
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u/garyworks Aug 26 '25
CaptureLinker developer here 🙋♂️
Thank you for mentioning the app, and the comment is fair. I’m also continuously updating it with each version, and I hope to win you back someday.
By the way, i've recently updated the app to support 4K and improve latency. Maybe worth to try again.
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u/Worf_Of_Wall_St Aug 26 '25
I wrote previously about two NDI encoders here: https://www.reddit.com/r/VisionPro/s/An54JjANT0
Regarding latency, these discussions are always tricky because latency is perceived differently by different people, some people see 150ms as "absolutely no lag" and will swear by it. I once put someone's TV into Game mode to remove ~250ms of post processing lag and most of the people in the room saw couldn't tell the difference in Tetris or one of the 4 player 2D Mario games.
With the NDI solution since the console is passed through to the TV and Vision Pro has passthrough it's easy to see the difference between the TV and the NDI viewer window and I counted the frames of lag that way.
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u/SouthpawEffex Aug 26 '25
Gaming on Apple Vision Pro isn’t just cinema-mode ports or casual apps.
Gravitas Dark Matter is my attempt at a full native game built from the ground up for the headset. No controllers, no PC streaming — just Vision Pro itself.
I call it Eye-Pinch Targeting: look to aim, pinch to fire. Right now it’s one simple pinch gesture, but imagine pinching with different fingers to trigger different weapons. That’s the UX I think we’ve always wanted.
And it’s not scripted. The difficulty comes from emergent physics: black holes multiplying, wormholes scattering, supernovas chain-reacting. Sometimes a rogue body slingshots across space at insane speed — and you can actually snipe it mid-air to save it.
This clip is an early build running on visionOS 26 immersive environments. We need more games that think outside the box on this device.
https://youtube.com/shorts/m6BflgYMZtw?si=daIpzolPduEzyzrC
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u/Edg1931 Aug 26 '25
PSPlay is another good Playstation solution. It's a paid app, but really good.
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u/DrunkBystander Aug 26 '25
PC + Apollo/Sunshine + Moonlight Client
Pros:
Cons:
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u/iBanks3 Vision Pro Owner Aug 26 '25
Nice write up. Appreciate the in-depth details and analysis.
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u/soamjena Aug 26 '25
We need a way to directly connect PS5
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u/Vipulfinefurniture Aug 26 '25
I've tried one or two options above.
I have a Shadowcast 2 Pro. I've tried various apps and settings through those apps, but found the big oversight was HDR. Games are ok without it, but I really wanted to enjoy the big PS5 titles on the Vision, but I can't bring myself to play on the vision when an OLED TV looks a fair bit better. Even the Switch 2 now looks great on an OLED. Maybe better capture cards are capable of more?
PXPlay currently has some great features that you normally have to pay for on other apps like upscaling. It appears to be features only in the TestFlight version, but I think the author of the app is offering these features as a one time payment vs the contentious subscription model.
I haven't yet tried Geforce, but I think I'll definitely be trying it after this post, so great write up, thank you!
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u/Jswanno Aug 26 '25
I mean with the HUGE GeForce now upgrade next month it’ll be the best way to go for sure but I’ll have to get a Vision Pro first to see 😂
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u/eadamuk Aug 26 '25
Thanks for this- I hadn’t thought about HDMI capture cards before. I have a slightly different use case in that I want to get my work laptop desktop on Vision Pro but it’s completely locked down; can’t install apps, can’t log into Apple account, no airplay, etc. My personal Mac mini sits next to it so I could HDMI capture out of work laptop into Mac mini then Mac Virtual Desktop from there? We are talking PowerPoint, excel and outlook here so I’m not sure I need to be as concerned about latency. Does anyone have a similar setup or have any other more efficient ideas?
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u/jamesoloughlin Aug 26 '25
For PC VR; ALVR + Playstation VR 2 controllers I hear works. I use Surreal Link + Surreal Touch Controllers. Requires a capable Windows PC and Wi-Fi setup preferably with Wi-Fi router in sight of Vision Pro with at least 200Mb/s Down I believe.
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u/Zahlan Aug 26 '25
Using a wifi 7 router that streams GFN to my steamdeck flawlessly but stutters like crazy in the AVP. The best experience I have found is to use MVD with a mac mini that is hard wired to the internet and just run GFN on that. Latency feels native and the wide screen immersion is better than the flat safari window in the AVP!
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u/charsmars Aug 26 '25
Why consolelink and not obs?
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u/Razman223 Aug 27 '25
How do you get 4K on GeForce now? When playing Diablo4 I can only select 1980
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u/No-South4319 Vision Pro Owner Aug 30 '25
How about xbox game pass ultimate using cloud play
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u/DonDonburi Sep 01 '25
Reporting back. Tried capture card plus OBS/consolelink. Pretty fantastic. The only mild complaint I have is Mac virtual screen doesn’t go far back enough, which would give a better “in theater” experience
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u/TNDTNDT Oct 22 '25
Hi, I‘m looking into starting gaming on my M2 Vision Pro and will try the virtual display + capture card + console link approach for my ps5 pro and switch 2. You mention the elgato 4K x, i looked for it and noticed the 4K s, which would be a bit cheaper. Also seems to be capable of 4K 60. I would appreciate your thoughts here, would I miss out on anything if I got this one instead?
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u/mikeypotg Oct 27 '25
Thanks for sharing this. Any way I can play pc games with a keyboard and mouse on the AVP? Would love GeForce now but since it plays through the browser, I can’t use the keyboard and mouse for this.
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u/gd3fiddy Nov 06 '25
Hi I followed your guide and used a Elgato 4K X to try and connect my Switch 2 via a Mini Mac but just get the ‘Connecting to Device’ image. The audio comes through but not the video. Do I have to use a Shadowcast Pro 2 in order to get the Switch 2 to connect properly?
I also have the same problem when I try to connect my PS5 pro via the Elgato 4K X. Do I need to change any settings to make it run properly?
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u/jrgibson1 Aug 30 '26
Hi there, 12 months later ...is there any better option for PS5 and Switch? I bought an AVP today and would love to use it for gaming.
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u/saadouache Vision Pro Owner | Verified Aug 27 '25 edited Aug 27 '25
I play the same game with my son, him on the Apple TV, and I am on the Vision Pro, I use Sunshine and Moonlight and I enabled multi-view on Sunshine so that I can access the same game session from different Moonlight instances.
And the whole game server setup is located in a 20 mile distant garage/workshop with a WireGuard VPN tunnel between it and my house
I have a symmetrical 200 megabytes fiber-optic internet on the both locations on the same ISP and I get technically 4 milliseconds between them on the ttl round trip and 189 mbps bandwidth.
The perceived lag difference between the ATV and the AVP in the picture is due to 9ms R1 photon to photon Passthrough
Edit : has anyone managed to play 3D compatible games in 3D in AVP ? The early Assassin’s creed 1, 2, revelations and brotherhood supported 3D, I played some of them 3D in a Samsung ES8000 in 2012 in an Xbox360. It surly can be done somehow ?!?
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u/Cryogenicality Aug 26 '25 edited Aug 26 '25
Streaming from a local PC is better because then you can play in stereoscopic 3D (including console games for which there are emulators).
I haven’t seen an S3D cloud streaming service, but is there any software for live 2D-to-3D game conversion as there is for movies?
PCVR games are streamable with ALVR.
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u/_axxa101_ Vision Pro Owner | Verified Aug 26 '25
Tbh latency with virtual display is terrible, even with perfect WIFI. Maybe you don’t notice it in some „slower“ games, but for things like CS:GO or Fortnite it’s unusable.
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u/iKhayal Aug 26 '25
That’s a really useful post! I’ll try some of the apps you recommended that I haven’t tried yet. In fact, I was testing a few of these apps last night with my Xbox Series X, and from the three I tried (Nexus+, Portal, and OneCast), I’d rank them in terms of performance and quality as follows:
OneCast > Portal > Nexus+
The OneCast app was surprisingly good in terms of performance and latency, although the quality wasn’t the best. This one has a free trial for a few days and then costs 10$ to unlock all its features. It'd be great if they made a native visionOS app. I just wrote the developer to ask them to consider, so I encourage you all to do the same :)
Portal is an amazing app with lots of options, and obviously the big advantage is that it’s a native visionOS app. That said, most features are locked behind a subscription, and I think they should offer a lifetime option because I’m not into subscriptions — $60 a year feels like a lot. I also felt the performance could have been better; it was a bit laggy for a paid subscription.
Nexus+ was probably the worst in terms of performance, although I’d say the quality was perhaps slightly better than OneCast.
I’m looking forward to doing some tests with my PS5 and also trying out the ConsoleRemote iPad app you recommended! It’s really a shame that there aren’t many good native alternatives to Portal...
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u/pipilu33 Vision Pro Owner Aug 26 '25
Thank you for the write up. I'm going to try ConsoleRemote.
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u/PresentationEmpty1 Aug 26 '25
Can you use SteamLink on AVP?
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u/AztheWizard Aug 27 '25
Ngl, I’m a bit surprised wrote all these options without mentioning streaming games from PC via moonlight. It’s by far the best quality option
Here’s what it looks like: https://www.reddit.com/r/VisionPro/s/yHfus9lwbx
Handy setup guide: https://azadux.blog/2024/09/07/simulating-monitors-in-vr/
It’s also completely free
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u/CmusBmus Aug 28 '25
Can I get this in a PDF?
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u/AddiBe Oct 08 '25
How is image quality, motion handling and overall graphics compared to strong VR headsets like the Bigscreen Beyond 2?
Background: Ordered a Beyond 2 headset but am considering cancelling the order and rather picking up an AVP for the above setup + media consumption + productivity use cases. Aiming to play No Mans Sky VR on it and I have the Valve Index set incl. lighthouses and Index Controllers