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Asus’ Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand makes reliable and desirable devices for serious gamers, and its newest mouse, the Asus ROG Gladius II, looks forward to continuing that tradition. When gaming is a serious business for you, you must make sure you have the very best peripherals that can give you a competitive edge. Asus, and especially the people in the ROG department, know this truly well, which is why the ROG Gladius II is packed with impressive features, like advanced 12000 DPI optical sensor, 50g acceleration, and a 1000Hz USB polling rate. This is our Asus ROG Gladius 2 Review.
The latter function, in particular, is designed to ensure that the Asus ROG Gladius II is a fast and accurate mouse. However, the Asus ROG Gladius II is not a cheap pointer, costing around $90. This makes it one of the expensive gaming mice out the re, with the beautiful Corsair’s Glaive RGB costing $69 (around £50, AU$90), and the Razer’s DeathAdder Elite, costing $69 (£69, AU$119).
Asus ROG Gladius 2 Review: Design
The design of the ROG Gladius II is somewhat subdued in some respects but shamelessly exaggerated in others. It’s not covered with buttons like some other mice, but it has enough buttons to make it flexible. Of course, there are the discreet left and right buttons. These can also be removed (using the modification switch at the bottom of the mouse), and the Omron switches can be changed to give you a responsive click that suits your playing style and taste.
The extra switches you can use are included in the box, and the convenience of replacing the switches can extend the life of this mouse – especially for people who like a little frantic clicking. Of course, being able to swap the type of switch under the primary buttons is a feature that will only appeal to a small audience – but if you’re after that kind of flexibility, you’ll be delighted with the Asus ROG Gladius II.
In addition to the primary buttons, there are three buttons on the left side of the mouse – including a DPI target button, which is helpful for sniping as it quickly changes the mouse’s sensitivity settings to make targeting more easygoing. At the top of the mouse, there is a scroll wheel, which can also be clicked, along with a DPI switch for more in-depth control of the mouse’s sensitivity.
The original design of the mouse is quite lovely, with no angular pieces jumping out to look ‘extreme.’ A subtle design on parts of the mouse adds patterns to the surface, matching other ROG devices, and also helps to give you more grip. What’s less subtle is the RGB illumination, which provides you with three lighting areas on the mouse: the scroll wheel, the ROG icon, and along the bottom of the mouse. This gives a reasonably pleasant effect where the light bounces off the surface of your desk or mouse pad when you use the Asus ROG Gladius II.
The light effects, such as colors and animation, can be configured in the Asus’ ROG Armoury software, which makes it easy to personalize the appearance of the mouse. However, while we found the lighting effects quite beautiful, they do not offer any gaming advantage – which could leave serious and professional gamers wondering if they are spending money on frivolous features, rather than those that could make an impact on their games.
Overall, the design is lovely, and the ROG Gladius II is light enough to flutter around a desk in a hectic firefight. In contrast, its ergonomic design helps make it feel comfortable to use.
Asus ROG Gladius 2 Review: Performance
If you spend a lot of money on a gaming mouse, performance is incredibly important. Thanks to the 12,000 DPI sensor, with 50g acceleration, the Asus ROG Gladius II is fast and responsive while playing. We’ve used it to play several games from a variety of genres, including the fast-paced Battlefield 1 first-person shooter. Whatever the game, the Asus ROG Gladius II performed admirably, and the buttons (with the standard switches installed) felt satisfying to use.
The DPI switch helped enormously in switching between game genres, although we found the mouse particularly good in first-person shooters thanks to the quick DPI switch button. However, for MMORPG (massively-multiplayer online role-playing games) and complicated games that require a lot of buttons, the Asus ROG Gladius II has a hard time, and you’d better use the Corsair Scimitar RGB or something like that.
Also, while you can type the switch mouse buttons, the Asus ROG Gladius II lacks other advanced gaming mouse functions, such as interchangeable weights. This is unfortunate because although the Asus ROG Gladius II is an excellent gaming mouse, it means that it is not quite the ultimate gaming mouse that suggests its price tag.
Conclusion
The Asus ROG Gladius II is an excellent all-round gaming mouse – and one of the best tips we’ve used for gaming. It has fantastic build quality, feels comfortable to use, and performs brilliantly in a variety of genres. However, the re’s no denying that this is an expensive mouse – and it lacks several advanced features, such as multiple additional buttons and interchangeable weights. This means that professional gamers – or enthusiasts who take their gaming very seriously – might want to look at a gaming mouse that’s less pretentious, but comes with more features and a lower price tag, instead.
Looking for more options? Check our list of Best Gaming Mouse