The gaming industry is more prominent today than ever, with constant growth in almost every area. From esports competitions to hardware innovations, the industry is evolving at a rapid pace to reach a value of US$363 billion by 2027.
One of the most active brands in the industry is Razer, a gaming laptop and peripheral manufacturer with solid ties to esports tournaments and the promotion of PC gaming. Growing exponentially in recent years, Razer has become one of the most prestigious names in gaming and shows no signs of slowing down.
In this article, we’ll examine the foundation of the Razer brand and how it recovered from financial insolvency to become an international gaming behemoth.
Early Beginnings
Although many believe Razer to be a modern brand, the company was founded back in 1998 as a subsidiary in San Diego, California. When launched, the brand had little interest in manufacturing gaming laptops and one sole focus—to create an outstanding gaming mouse.
It achieved this goal a year later with the Razer Boomslang. The simple mouse revolutionized gaming, featuring a 2,000 DPI optical sensor—something unheard of then. At the same time, it set the Razer brand apart as an innovative company that pushes the boundaries of technology.
Although the success of the Boomslang mouse was undeniable, the gaming brand holding company, kärna LLC, was not faring well. Just one year after launching its first product, Razer and the whole of kärna LLC ceased all operations due to financial constraints. Many saw this as the end of a company that could have gone on to do great things.
Rebirth
Nothing more was heard about the Razer brand until 2005. At this time, Min-Liang Tan and Robert Krakoff acquired the rights to the brand and relaunched it through investment from Temasek Holdings and Li Ka-shing, making the company American and Singaporean.
The brand’s new dual ownership allowed it to quickly spread into international markets, particularly within Southeast Asia. The release of the DeathAdder gaming mouse in 2006, lauded for its precision and ergonomics, boosted this spread, and it became one of the best-selling mice of all time.
In 2007, Razer again showcased its innovative styling and technology by expanding its product line beyond gaming mice. By releasing the Tarantula keyboard and Barracuda headset, the brand cemented its position as a high-quality manufacturer that prioritizes gamers’ needs.
Diversification
Over the next few years, Razer built strong brand loyalty by offering peripherals that offered exceptional performance at reasonable prices. In 2011, the company began its first move into offering gaming devices rather than just peripherals through the launch of the Switchblade.
The handheld gaming device offered an adaptive keyboard and spectacular gameplay. Although just a prototype, it highlighted the brand’s ability to move beyond input devices and showcased the company’s capability to innovate.
Later the same year, the brand revolutionized the industry after taking a public dig at fellow manufacturer HP and announcing the launch of its fully aluminum gaming laptop, the Razer Blade. The announcement sent waves throughout the gaming industry.
The laptop features ten adaptive keys that can be programmed for gaming, alongside a completely new user interface accessible through a secondary LCD. This allows quick access to gaming features or system information and gives gamers even more control.
Despite these innovative gaming features, the Razer Blade’s standout feature was its slim form factor. Proving that gaming laptops don’t need to be large and bulky, as they were at the time, the Razer Blade was less than an inch (2.54 cm) thick and weighed just 6.97 lbs (3.16 kg).
Highlighting its ability to diversify, the brand continued to release new, revolutionary gaming products between 2014 and 2016. Among these were the Razer Nabu, a smartwatch with fitness tracking, and the Razer Core.
The launch of the Razer Core again shook the industry. Allowing gamers to mount an external graphics card (GPU) to their laptop through the use of a specialized enclosure, the technology pushed the limits of mobile gaming technology further than ever before and opened a new world of performance gaming on laptops.
Global Reach
With new gaming laptops regularly released that provide slick new designs and performance boosts, Razer continued to grow. The company also began acquiring other entities to boost its portfolio, including the micro console brand Ouya in 2015.
In 2017, the company was officially listed on the stock exchange, marking a milestone in its history. From ceased operations, the brand has grown to be worth more than US$2.5 billion and has spread into other areas beyond just gaming.
Notable accomplishments include a mobile payments system called Razer Pay (recently rebranded as Fiuu) launched through the acquisition of MOL Global in 2018, in-ear monitors called Razer Moray to help streamers, and the zVentures Web 3 Incubator to promote blockchain gaming in 2023.
Brand Characteristics
Although innovation is at the forefront of Razer’s international success, other factors have also made the brand stand out.
Brand Identity
One of the most prominent of these factors is the brand’s identity, which it has worked hard to build. Touted as a brand “For Gamers. By Gamers,” the company specifically markets to gamers, emphasizing the need to address common issues within the gaming industry.
This targeted approach to marketing has helped the brand enter new markets, attract gamers away from existing brands, and solidify brand loyalty that resonates within the industry. The clever manner in which this has been done has also helped make the distinctive triple-headed snake logo used by the brand instantly recognizable in many regions.
Quality
Another factor that has driven Razer’s growth has been the quality of its products. From when the company produced just gaming mice to the exceptional gaming laptops now available, all Razer products are made using high-quality materials and offer robust construction.
While this approach has led to the brand being slightly higher-priced than competitors, it has also attracted many gamers who would rather spend more for components that will last.
Performance
Razer has also set itself apart by producing gaming devices with unbelievable performance. The brand’s laptops, often paired with top-of-the-line components, are capable of handling everything from simple online slot games like those on casinos.com to the latest graphically intensive AAA titles.
This performance is boosted by the company’s unique cooling systems, displays with high refresh rates, and various gaming-specific enhancements.