Steam Machine · Guides
PS5 Remote Play on Steam Machine: Asobi vs chiaki-ng
Summary
chiaki-ng is the established open-source route for streaming a PS4 or PS5 you own. Asobi adds PS Plus cloud streaming in a public playtest, but its long-term support is not established.
Sony's official Remote Play page lists Windows and macOS clients, not Linux. SteamOS therefore has no official Sony client. Two community options fill the gap, and they are not the same tool.
The short answer: install chiaki-ng. Try Asobi if you want PS Plus cloud streaming specifically, and do not build your setup around it.
They solve overlapping but different problems
chiaki-ng streams from a PlayStation you own. It is a reverse-engineered client for Sony's own Remote Play protocol, running against your console over your network or over the internet.
Asobi does that too, and adds something chiaki-ng cannot: PS Plus Premium cloud streaming, where games run on Sony's servers and no console is involved at all.
So the comparison splits. For streaming your own console, both work and the question is maturity. For cloud streaming without a console, only one option exists, and it carries a specific risk.
chiaki-ng
Free, open source, and available as a Linux Flatpak. The chiaki-ng project describes it as a PlayStation Remote Play client rather than an official Sony application.
The v1.10.0 release notes document the current release's streaming, renderer, audio, haptics, and PSN-connection work. Version numbers and release status can change, so check the project's release page before installing.
The project documents these capabilities:
- PS4 and PS5 Remote Play
- Local network and, since a recent addition, remote connection over the internet through PSN
- HDR streaming via the HEVC HDR codec, added in a 2026 update
- Adjustable resolution and bitrate rather than a fixed cap
- Full controller mapping, configurable per binding
Setup is Desktop Mode, Discover, search, install, then pair with an 8-digit PIN from your console. Add it as a non-Steam game afterward and it launches from Gaming Mode without touching Desktop Mode again.
What you need: Remote Play enabled on the console, a PSN account that can pair with it, and a stable high-speed network. Wired ethernet to the console is ideal; wireless quality and internet routing are the variables most likely to affect the result.
The honest weakness: setup is more manual than a commercial app, and internet Remote Play outside your home network is where most people get stuck.
Asobi
Asobi: Remote Play is a third-party app from Inside Internet that entered a Steam public playtest in August 2026. The Steam listing and the developer's cloud-streaming guide are the current references for what the test supports.
It advertises PS4 and PS5 Remote Play from your own console, locally or over the internet. Its setup and reliability are still playtest questions, so the lower-friction claim should not be treated as a measured result.
The part that gets attention is the other half: PS Plus Premium cloud streaming, no console required. Asobi's setup notes say that Premium and regional game availability are required. This is an unofficial path, not a Sony-supported SteamOS feature.
The developer has discussed wider platform support, but the Steam Machine build remains a playtest and its final feature set is not announced.
The precedent worth knowing about
A ResetEra thread about PSStream records a January 2026 launch and a later takedown announcement. Participants speculated about legal pressure, but the thread does not establish the reason as fact. Treat it as a warning about the durability of unofficial clients, not proof of what will happen to Asobi.
That history does not prove what happens to Asobi. Asobi is currently a playtest rather than a finished release, and Sony has not published a SteamOS support commitment. Anyone treating it as a permanent part of their setup should keep a second route available.
Which to use
Install chiaki-ng if you own a PS4 or PS5 and want to stream from it. It is open source, documented for Linux, and focused on the console-to-client Remote Play problem.
Try Asobi if you want PS Plus Premium cloud streaming without a console, or if chiaki-ng's internet setup defeated you and you want something simpler. Understand that it is in playtest and that the last app doing this lasted six days.
Use both if you want the cloud library and a reliable fallback. They do not conflict.
The recommendation is not that Asobi is bad. It is that one option is an established open-source client and the other is an experimental service that depends on an unofficial cloud-streaming path.
Setup notes for Steam Machine
Steam Machine is a living room device on a fixed network, which removes the biggest variable handheld users deal with. Wire it to your router if you can, and wire the PlayStation too. Remote Play quality is bound by the weaker of the two connections, and wireless on both ends is where most stuttering comes from.
Both apps can be added as non-Steam games so they launch from Gaming Mode with a controller, which is the right end state on a couch device. Do that once during setup and you never need Desktop Mode for it again.
If you are new to Desktop Mode or hit a permissions error during install, the Desktop Mode guide covers the basics. Neither app should need sudo, and both are user-space installs when you use their Flatpak or Steam distribution.
What is confirmed and what remains unknown
Sony documents Remote Play for Windows and macOS, while chiaki-ng and Asobi document unofficial Linux clients. The exact Asobi feature set, long-term availability, and any future Sony response are unknown. Do not treat the playtest as a permanent support promise.