This for the Kano Computer Kit, which we no longer sell. But we know we have some fans out there who do love the KCK and this is for you!
At Kano, we love video games, including Fortnite! With this tutorial, we’re going to show you how to play Fortnite on your Kano Computer Kit in a few simple steps.
Haven’t got a Kano Computer Kit? No problem. Here’s an exclusive discount code for readers of our blog which will give you 10% off a Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch for a limited time. KANO-FORTNITE10
Just head to Kano.me and enter the code at checkout to save.
Let’s get started
As well as Fortnite, at Kano, we are also big fans of Steam. If you’re not familiar with it, Steam is one of the largest digital game stores in the world, with a massive collection of games to buy and play. While Steam is very well known, less well-known are its capabilities to stream games across your home, from one computer to another. Steam calls this In-Home streaming. We will use this technology to stream any game you have on Steam to your Kano Computer Kit, as well as Fortnite!
In-Home streaming lets you use one powerful computer to run games (we’ll call it the primary computer for the sake of the article), capturing the video and sending it to a second computer throughout the network (the secondary computer).
The second computer displays the video and captures inputs from the controller, while the primary computer manages all the processing.
Below is a great picture from Steam’s own blog, explaining this setup, with the primary computer to the right, and secondary computer to the left.
Just this week, the official Beta version of the Steam Link application was released for Raspberry Pi. This lets your Kano Computer Kit act as a secondary computer for In-Home streaming, effectively allowing you to play any Steam games you might already own, like Tomb Raider, Far Cry, Dark Souls, on your Computer Kit.
This even extends to games like Fortnite, through Steam’s “Add a non-Steam Game” feature. Here’s how to do it.
Things to know before you start
The Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch are not running the games directly. The games are run on a computer elsewhere in your local network (home); the Kano Computer Kits let you play the games it runs, thanks to In-Home streaming.
The purpose of this tutorial is only to explain how to install the Steam Link App on either the Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch. For any help regarding the app itself or setting up other types of controllers please check the Valve forums.
The performance and quality of the games you’ll be able to run depends on your primary computer. The more powerful it is, the better the quality and performance you will get on your Kano Computer Kit.
Minimal network latency is absolutely crucial for a satisfying experience. Ideally, you want to use an Ethernet connection between the primary computer and your modem/router and Ethernet connection between your secondary computer and your modem/router, for maximum performance.
At this time, this is not a pre-built feature on the Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch, so it requires some tinkering to get everything running. The Steam Link app is currently in Beta, which means things can change, improve or evolve. This is down to Valve and Kano has no control over this application.
What do I need?
1.A Windows, Linux, or Mac computer with Steam installed and some games, will be the primary computer running the game.
2. A Kano Computer Kit, Computer Kit Touch, or Computer Kit Complete, will be the secondary computer, where you will play the game.
3. A stable and reliable local area network. We recommend linking both computers to your router via Ethernet cable if possible or using a good quality WiFi router. This is critical, as the performance of the games will depend on the speed of your network.
4. A compatible controller, we’ve used the Steam Controller but other wired and Bluetooth controllers might work.
5. A Steam account and some games.
1. Prepare the Primary computer.
Go to your primary computer and make sure the Steam client is running, and Steam In-Home Streaming is enabled. Learn more about enabling this feature here.
2. Prepare the Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch(the secondary computer)
Turn on the Kano Computer Kit. For portable models, have the battery fully charged before starting. Make sure your Kano Computer Kit is able to access the Internet, as it will need to download some data next.
Once you’ve booted and are seeing the dashboard, swipe (or scroll) the Apps list to the right until you find the Terminal app. Open it. Once in the terminal, type the following command to download the Steam Link app.
curl -#Of http://media.steampowered.com/steamlink/rpi/steamlink_1.0.7_armhf.deb
Once finished, then type the following command to install the app you just downloaded:
sudo dpkg -i steamlink_1.0.7_armhf.deb
The app should now be installed on your Kano CK.
3. Setting up a controller (using a Steam Controller)
If using a Steam Controller, we recommend using the USB dongle that came with it. Connect the dongle to one of the free USB ports on your Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch.
Still, on the terminal app, run the following command to install the drivers that let your computer communicate with the controller.
sudo apt-get install steam-devices
Now reboot the Computer Kit or Computer Kit Touch, we’re almost ready.
4. Run the Steam Link app.
Once rebooted, open the Terminal app once more. Run the Steam Link app, to do it, just type the following command.
steamlink
By default the app does not become an icon on the Kano OS Dashboard, so to run it you have to go through the Terminal app.
Now you should see the Steam Link dashboard, where you can choose to Pair Controller, then select Steam Controller. Turn on your controller whilst holding the X button, it should connect.
5. Linking your primary and secondary computers.
On your Kano Computer Kit, press the “Settings” button, then press the “Computer” button. The Steam Link app should be listing all available computers running Steam on your network, if it’s not, check your Internet connectivity and press “Rescan”.
Identify and select your primary computer from the list and you will be shown a numeric code on the screen of the Kano Computer Kit, note it down.
Head to your primary computer and you should see that the Steam client is asking you to enter the code you were just given.
6. Play some Steam games.
You should be now looking at the main Steam Link app screen on the secondary computer, with controller ready, good connection, and a primary pc ready to stream. If that’s the case press the “Start Playing” button to get going!
Some games might require some configuration of your controller
At this stage, you are ready to play any game from your Steam library, but what about Fortnite?
7. Running Fortnite on your Kano Computer Kit.
Fortnite is not on Steam, so in order to play it, we first need to add it to our Steam game library. Head to your primary computer now.
On your primary computer, open the Steam client, and head to the Library page (highlighted in orange on the picture below).
Now click the “Add a game” link at the bottom and select “Add a Non-Steam Game” from the list that appears.
You will be presented with a list of programs installed on your computer. If Fortnite appears on the list, select it and click the “Add Selected Programs” button. If you don’t see it on the list, click the “Browse” button.
If you clicked the “Browse” button, now you have to tell Steam where to find Fortnite on your computer. Navigate to the correct folder, which is usually:
`C:\EpicGames\Fortnite\FortniteGame\Binaries\Win64``
Once you find the correct folder, select the “FortniteLauncher.exe” file. That’s it, now you should see Fortnite in your list of Steam games!
