Gaming Projector Setup: How to Play PS5, Xbox & Retro Games on a 100-Inch Screen

Why Gaming on a Projector Hits Different

There's a moment, about ten minutes into your first gaming session on a projector, where it clicks. You're playing something you've played a hundred times before -- Elden Ring, Horizon, Mario Kart -- but it feels completely new. Because the screen isn't a rectangle on your wall anymore. It IS the wall. A hundred inches of wall. And your brain treats it differently.

A 55-inch TV is impressive. A 100-inch projected image is immersive. That's the difference, and it's not subtle.

Three things make projector gaming worth considering in 2026:

• Immersion at a fraction of the cost. A 100-inch TV costs north of three grand. A projector that throws a 100-inch image in a dark room? Fifty quid to three hundred, depending on how seriously you take it.
• Couch co-op is back. Split-screen on a 55-inch TV is borderline unplayable. Split-screen on a 120-inch projected image? Each player gets what amounts to a 60-inch screen. Mario Kart, It Takes Two, Overcooked -- they all come alive when the screen is big enough for everyone to actually see what's happening.
• The vibe. Lights off, projector on, mates round, controllers in hand. It feels like a cinema. It feels like an event. Gaming on a projector turns an ordinary Tuesday night into something people actually want to come to.

The Specs That Actually Matter for Gaming

Projector spec sheets are a minefield. Manufacturers throw around numbers that sound impressive but mean nothing useful. Here's what actually matters for gaming, stripped back to what you need to know.

Input lag (the big one)

Input lag is the delay between you pressing a button and the action appearing on screen. On a good gaming monitor, this is around 1-5ms. On a TV with Game Mode, it's 8-15ms. On a projector, it varies wildly -- from 16ms on a good one to 100ms+ on a cheap one without Game Mode.

Here's the practical translation:

• Under 20ms -- feels responsive. Fine for everything including online shooters.
• 20-35ms -- perfectly playable for single-player, racing, platformers, RPGs. You won't notice unless you're comparing side-by-side with a monitor.
• 35-50ms -- noticeable lag on fast-paced games but fine for casual play, turn-based games, and anything relaxed.
• 50ms+ -- genuinely sluggish. Avoid for anything action-based.

The fix: Always enable Game Mode on your projector. This disables fancy image processing (frame interpolation, noise reduction) and typically cuts input lag in half. If your projector doesn't have a Game Mode, check the manual for an "Enhanced Gaming" or "Low Latency" setting.

Resolution

For gaming, 1080p (Full HD) is the sweet spot for most projectors under £400. It looks sharp at 100 inches in a dark room, and the PS5 and Xbox both output at 1080p for performance modes in most games anyway. Native 4K projectors exist but start at around £800-1000 and the difference is less dramatic on a projected image than you'd expect -- the slight softness of projection already diffuses the image.

Refresh rate

Most projectors run at 60Hz, which matches the output of most console games. Some newer models support 120Hz at 1080p, which matters if you play competitive shooters on PS5 or Xbox Series X with 120fps modes enabled. For the vast majority of gaming, 60Hz is absolutely fine.

Brightness (lumens)

For gaming in a dark room -- which is how most people game on projectors -- you need far fewer lumens than spec sheets suggest. Around 200-400 ISO lumens is plenty for a dark room at 80-100 inches. If you want to game with some ambient light (curtains open, lamps on), aim for 500+ ISO lumens. Be wary of "ANSI lumens" vs "LED lumens" -- manufacturers inflate numbers. Our throw distance calculator can help you work out the right screen size for your room.

Quick spec reference

Budget Picks: Gaming on a Shoestring

Here's the thing most gaming projector guides won't tell you: you can game on a really cheap projector and still have a brilliant time. The experience won't match a 4K OLED TV. It's not supposed to. It's supposed to be a 100-inch screen in your dark living room with your mates laughing at each other on Mario Kart. And for that, fifty quid is all you need. For a broader comparison of budget projectors, see our full mini projector reviews.

Premium Picks: When You're Serious About It

If you've tried projector gaming and you're hooked -- or if you already know this is what you want -- these are the projectors worth investing in. Game Mode, low input lag, better resolution, and features that make setup painless.

PS5 & Xbox Series X: Getting the Setup Right

Plugging a next-gen console into a projector is straightforward, but there are a few settings you'll want to get right to make the most of it.

HDMI basics

Use a high-speed HDMI cable (HDMI 2.0 minimum). The cable that came with your console is fine. For 4K/120Hz (if your projector supports it via HDMI 2.1), you'll need an Ultra High Speed HDMI cable. Don't spend a fortune -- a £10 cable from Amazon does the same job as a £40 "premium" one. The digital signal either works or it doesn't.

PS5 setup tips

1. Enable Game Mode on the projector first. The PS5 will auto-detect Game Mode on compatible TVs, but most projectors need it turned on manually.
2. Go to Settings > Screen and Video > Video Output. Set resolution to match your projector's native resolution (1080p for most). If the projector accepts 4K, try it -- but many projectors will look just as good at native 1080p with the PS5 doing the downscaling.
3. Under Game Presets, set Performance Mode as default if your projector is 1080p. This prioritises frame rate over resolution, which feels better on a projector where you're sitting further from the screen.
4. HDR: Most budget and mid-range projectors cannot properly display HDR. If HDR is enabled and the image looks washed out or overly dark, turn it off. Seriously. SDR on a projector usually looks better than bad HDR.
5. RGB Range: Set to Automatic. If colours look crushed (dark areas losing detail), manually switch between Full and Limited until it matches your projector.

Xbox Series X setup tips

1. Go to Settings > General > TV & Display Options. Set resolution to match your projector.
2. Under Video Modes, enable "Allow 120Hz" if your projector supports it. Enable "Allow auto low-latency mode" (ALLM) -- this tells the projector to switch to Game Mode automatically if it supports it.
3. Same HDR advice as PS5: if it looks wrong, turn it off. The Xbox has an HDR calibration app under Display settings, which is worth running if you do keep HDR on.
4. VRR (Variable Refresh Rate): Only works with HDMI 2.1 projectors. If your projector supports it, enable it. If not, don't worry -- the benefit is minimal for console gaming at stable frame rates.

Audio setup

Projector speakers are almost universally terrible for gaming. You need spatial audio to hear footsteps, explosions need bass, and dialogue needs clarity. Your options:

• Soundbar -- a basic £50-80 soundbar placed under the projection area massively improves things. Bluetooth connection to the projector or optical/HDMI ARC from the console.
• Gaming headset -- plugs straight into the controller (PS5 and Xbox both support this). Best audio quality, zero projector dependency. The obvious choice for late-night sessions when you don't want to wake the house.
• Bluetooth speaker -- a JBL Flip or similar, connected to the projector. Good enough for casual gaming and couch co-op. Not great for competitive play due to Bluetooth latency.

Retro Gaming on a Projector: Pure Nostalgia

Here's where projector gaming goes from "pretty good" to "why didn't I do this years ago." Retro games -- N64, SNES, Mega Drive, GameBoy, PS1, PS2 -- look absolutely incredible on a projector. And not in spite of their low resolution, but because of it.

Pixel art was never designed to be sharp. Those chunky sprites and flat-colour backgrounds were built for CRT screens that softened everything naturally. A projector does the same thing. The slight diffusion of a projected image gives retro games a warm, analogue look that a modern 4K TV -- which exposes every jagged pixel -- simply can't match.

How to set it up

• Nintendo Switch -- the easiest option. The Switch has a massive library of retro games via Nintendo Switch Online (NES, SNES, N64, Game Boy, Mega Drive). Dock it, HDMI to projector, done. Mario 64 on a 100-inch screen is a childhood dream made real.
• Raspberry Pi emulation -- a £40 Raspberry Pi running RetroPie or Batocera gives you access to virtually every retro console. HDMI output, USB controllers, and thousands of games. The setup takes an afternoon but lasts forever.
• Original hardware + HDMI adapter -- if you still have an N64 or SNES in the loft, HDMI adapters like the RetroTINK let you plug old consoles into modern HDMI projectors. The purist's choice.
• Steam Deck / PC -- RetroArch on a Steam Deck, connected to a projector via USB-C to HDMI, gives you a portable retro gaming projector setup you can take anywhere.

Best retro games for projector nights

Some games just work better on a massive screen:

• GoldenEye 007 (N64) -- four-player split-screen on a 120-inch projection. Each player gets a 60-inch quadrant. It's the university experience your 14-inch CRT could never deliver.
• Mario Kart 64 / Mario Kart 8 -- the obvious choice for a group. Works brilliantly.
• Zelda: Ocarina of Time -- genuinely moving to experience this on a huge screen. The art style scales beautifully.
• Street Fighter / Tekken -- fighting games are perfect for projectors. Two players, one big screen, input lag barely matters at casual skill levels.
• Any turn-based RPG -- Final Fantasy, Pokemon, Fire Emblem. Zero input lag concerns, beautiful pixel art at scale, and you can play from the sofa with a cup of tea.

Projector vs TV for Gaming: The Honest Comparison

Every gaming projector article will tell you projectors are amazing and you should buy one immediately. We're going to be honest. Projectors are brilliant for gaming -- but they're not better than TVs at everything. Here's the genuine trade-off.

Our honest take

A projector is not a TV replacement for gaming. It's a TV complement. The ideal setup is a TV or monitor for daily gaming and competitive play, and a projector for the sessions that matter -- game nights with mates, story-driven single-player marathons, retro gaming evenings, and anything where immersion trumps input lag.

If you can only have one, and you mostly play alone in a bright room, get a TV. If you can only have one, and you mostly game in the evening in a darkened room with other people, get a projector. If you're reading this article, you probably already have a TV -- the projector is the addition that makes gaming feel special again. For more on getting the most out of projectors in general, check our complete ambience guide.

Common Questions

Is a projector good enough for PS5 / Xbox Series X gaming?

Yes, with the right model. For competitive online shooters, you want sub-20ms input lag and a Game Mode (the BenQ TH685P is the standout). For single-player story games -- God of War, Zelda, Red Dead -- input lag matters far less and the immersion of a 100+ inch screen is genuinely hard to go back from. Pick based on what you actually play, not what spec sheets tell you to care about.

What input lag is acceptable for gaming?

Under 20ms for competitive play. Under 35ms for everything else. Above 50ms and you'll feel it on action games. Always enable Game Mode on the projector -- it typically halves the input lag by disabling unnecessary image processing.

Do I need HDMI 2.1?

Probably not. HDMI 2.1 supports 4K/120Hz and VRR, but most projectors under £1,000 use HDMI 2.0. That gives you 4K/60Hz or 1080p/120Hz, which covers the vast majority of console gaming. HDMI 2.1 only matters if you're specifically chasing 4K at 120fps -- and very few console games actually run at that.

Can I use a cheap projector for casual gaming?

Absolutely. A £50 Yaber V2 in a dark room is perfectly good for Mario Kart, FIFA, retro games, and anything where you're having fun rather than chasing milliseconds. Won't match a gaming monitor. Not supposed to. It's about the experience, not the spec sheet.

Is it worth getting a projector just for gaming?

On its own, probably not -- a gaming TV or monitor is more practical for daily use. But the beauty of a projector is that it's never just for gaming. Use it for films, bedroom ambience, D&D sessions, parties, and anything else where a big screen transforms the experience. The gaming is a bonus on top of everything else it does.

What about projector screen vs white wall?

For gaming in a dark room, a white wall is fine. Seriously. A dedicated screen will give you a slightly brighter, more even image, but the difference is modest -- especially if your wall is smooth and light-coloured. If you want to get the best image, a cheap pull-down screen (£30-50) is a worthwhile upgrade. But don't let the lack of a screen stop you from trying it. For more on projection surfaces, see our no-screen projector guide.

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