With VR coming up in the world of gaming, companies all around the world are trying to do their part in making the gaming experience more immersive. What would you say if I told you there was a mouse out there that immersed you further into the PC gaming realm? If I were you, I’d probably be very wary – but SteelSeries has proved it is totally possible.
The Rival 700 is a big improvement from the previous Rival mice, becoming the first ever mouse to provide haptic feedback. Yes, the mouse will actually vibrate. While playing Counter Strike: Global Offense, the Rival 700 began to pulse when health got low, a headshot was achieved and ammo was running out. This vibration function is completely customizable. You can modify when the mouse provides haptic feedback, and how often. Haptic feedback in mice is a feature you never knew you needed.
Another new, innovative feature is the 700’s OLED display on the left side. This can be used to provide information about the game you’re playing, or you can simply upload a gif or image of choice through the application. Although my camera didn’t capture it perfectly, you may be able to tell the mouse was shown with the Shia Labeouf “just do it” gif; before that, it was demoed with a spinning Nicolas Cage head. Which, let’s face it: I’d never not have that on display.
The mouse is slightly heavier than other products of its kind, but after some adjusting, it will become to feel more natural. The weight gives you a good balance with high-sensitivity and overall feeling of quality. Consumers had complained about the rubber coming off with previous models, so the 700 has double-injected rubber to prevent this from happening. The durability of the left and right click buttons has also been improved.
Coming with three swappable covers, a replaceable laser sensor, and endless customization through the SteelSeries application, you may want to seriously consider dropping $99 on this bad boy come spring 2016.
