Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard of Razer. Its high-quality gaming peripherals are everywhere.
From mice and keyboards to headsets, condenser mics, gaming PCs and even phones. The iconic green glow of Razer is firmly stamped all over the gaming world.
Even mum knew what I was talking about when I asked for a new Razer keyboard for Christmas.
And that’s saying something.
What you probably didn’t know is that Razer has launched a new entry-level, cost-efficient gaming mouse. Aimed at gamers on a budget, the Razer Basilisk Essential swings onto the scene at a very affordable $79 AUD. But how does it fair against equally priced competition?
Having reviewed the HyperX Pulsefire Core earlier this year, I was able to test the Basilisk Essential alongside its prime competitor.
Razer Basilisk Essential Review
The Basilisk Essential is a smooth and comfortable mouse. It has an ergonomic grip with a lightly textured thumb groove and resting ledge.
The textured grip on the outer edge of the mouse prevents finger-drag on the mousepad which allows a solid grasp of the mouse as you flick from headshot to headshot.
There’s no need for a vice-like grip.
The Basilisk Essential fits snugly in your hand if you’re a right-handed mouse user. With the ergonomic grip comes restrictions, as the Basilisk Essential can’t be comfortably used left-handed. A minor gripe as most lefties will use a WASD layout gaming keyboard as well, but someone is going to hate it and buy something else.
All Razer gaming accessories are known for quality, and the Basilisk Essential is no exception. It features a 6400 DPI Optical Sensor, which is a downgrade from the standard Basilisk 16000 DPI 5g Optical Sensor.
However, the Basilisk Essential still delivers an exceptional response time for the average gamer and for the player on a budget, it’s more than enough.
Comparisons
The Basilisk Essential just pips the HyperX Pulsefire Core in DPI settings, but where it really has its prime competition beat is the Razer’s patented mechanical mouse switches.
Fast and accurate clicking, durable and responsive better any competitor. You’re getting the same quality switches as Razer’s DeathAdder Elite Gaming Mouse without the hefty price tag. That’s a big win for me personally.
Not too long ago I went through no less than four Logitech Gaming Mice as the switches died after long sessions of Overwatch or World of Warcraft.
Perhaps one of the coolest features of the Razer Basilisk Essential is the addition of the optional fitted thumb ‘paddle’ button. All seven buttons on the Basilisk Essential can be programmed and interface with various games.
Using the new Beta version of Razer’s Synapse software, you can fully customise your layout. The thumb paddle is a button on the side towards the front of the mouse, with a long paddle like switch allowing you to reach it comfortably.
It’s perfect for those players who leave their microphone on open, there’s a special place in hell for players in a noisy house with open mics. The excuse “bro there’s so many buttons I don’t have anything to bind my mic to” just won’t cut it anymore.
And that’s a win for not only Razer, but for PC Gamers everywhere.
Synapse Misfire
If I really scrutinise the Basilisk Essential, the biggest flaw I could find was the Beta Synapse software.
It works well enough for basic mouse binds but is far less intuitive than HyperX’s Ngenuity or Logitech’s Gaming Suite. Razer’s Synapse software has better connectivity with games, as soon as it finished installing it found all my game folders and imported my settings.
That’s pretty cool, but implementing or adapting those settings to the Basilisk Essential was far more difficult than I expected. I managed to set some custom binds like a melee button and spamming a voice command, but outside of that, I lost interest playing with settings.
I’m certain Razer will iron out the kinks and simplify the interface, but for me, it all landed firmly in the ‘too hard’ basket. Aside from the lack of colour options, the failings of Synapse is a rather small nitpick in what has been an amazing experience.
The Verdict
I recommend the Razer Basilisk Essential for anyone looking for a quality, reliable and affordable gaming mouse. Designed especially for First Person Shooter players, it beats out all the competitors at the same price point of $79 AUD.
Gliding seamlessly across all surfaces, comfortably sitting in the palm of my hand and never missing a beat it’s so beautifully designed for this purpose.
Unfortunately, it leaves fans of other games behind. It can be used for MOBA’s like League of Legends or MMO’s like World of Warcraft. However, fans of these titles will be left wanting more programmable buttons, adjustable settings and a better-tailored product.
That’s not to say the Basilisk Essential doesn’t cross-platform well, it’s just an FPS mouse first and foremost, and that’s okay with me.
A Razer Basilisk Essential was provided by Razer for this review.
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