LibNXbox vs Sunshine
LibNXbox
github.com
Sunshine
app.lizardbyte.devSide by side
| Figure | LibNXbox | Sunshine |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 1 |
| Spec score · Game Remote Play Software | 8.4 (#6) | 7.4 (#19) |
| Downloads | The project says to download libnxbox.nro from its GitHub releases. | The download links include Cloudsmith, Copr, Arch Linux, Docker, Flathub, and Homebrew. |
| Purpose | LibNXbox is an Xbox Cloud Streaming client for Nintendo Switch that streams from an Xbox console or xCloud. | Sunshine is a self-hosted game stream host for Moonlight with low-latency cloud gaming server capabilities. |
| Support | The README recommends checking the generated debug.log for clues and asks users with certain multi-console issues to file an issue with logs. | LizardByte says Discord is its preferred support method and GitHub Discussions can be used for support, feature requests, and general discussion. |
Plans
In their own words
LibNXbox
LibNXbox is free GPL-2.0 homebrew software that streams from an Xbox console or Xbox Cloud Gaming to a Nintendo Switch. Download the libnxbox.nro file from GitHub releases and run it in title mode; applet mode crashes. For home streaming, the NRO discovers the console in the same manner as xbox.com/play. The README describes launching cloud titles through a Moonlight Switch NRO forwarder using a game AppID. LibNXboxNROHelper can search the Microsoft Store and create game-art thumbnails plus a titles.txt file containing titles and xCloud AppIDs. Video is listed as 1280×720 H.264 using Tegra X1 NVDEC decoding, with stereo Opus audio at 48 kHz and an approximately 60 ms latency target. Authentication uses Microsoft’s servers and saves a token on the SD card. Queue times and service restrictions are not bypassed.
Sunshine
Sunshine is a free, self-hosted game-streaming host for Moonlight clients, running on your own hardware. It supports AMD, Intel, and Nvidia hardware encoding, with software encoding also available. A web interface lets you configure the host and pair clients from a browser, including on mobile devices. Moonlight clients are listed for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Xbox, and more. Sunshine emulates Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series, DualShock 4, DualSense, and Nintendo Switch Pro controllers. Host compatibility includes FreeBSD, Linux, macOS, and Windows, with features varying by system. Listed maximums are 4K resolution and 120 fps. Minimum requirements include 4 GB RAM, a supported GPU, and 5 GHz 802.11ac networks for host and client. Sunshine is GPL-3.0 licensed and distributed through several package sources.