RAZER™ RELEASES THE FIRST GAMING GRADE MOUSE SPECIFICALLY FOR SOUTHPAWS

Carlsbad, Calif. – March 16, 2010 - Razer, the world’s leading manufacturer of high-end precision gaming and lifestyle peripherals, today announced the Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition™, the very first gaming mouse designed with the professional left-handed gamer in mind. The Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition was created to meet community demands for a mouse that was purposefully engineered to give lefties the competitive edge, combining a comfortable ergonomic form factor with a powerfully precise 3.5G infrared sensor.

“Leftie gamers have long been requesting that we develop a gaming grade mouse that is designed exclusively for the left-handed gaming community and we really value the feedback we receive from our fans,” said Robert “Razerguy” Krakoff, president, Razer USA. “Not many gamers know this, but I am a southpaw myself and feel truly excited to have a mouse that fits perfectly in my left hand. There is really no substitute for gaming with your naturally dominant hand.”

About The Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition
The Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition features a unique ergonomic form factor to give lefties a comfort they can call their own for extended gaming sessions. The Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition boasts five programmable Hypereponse™ buttons, as well as the trademark 1000Hz Ultrapolling™ technology, providing gamers with the speed necessary to make every moment count. Loaded with a 3500dpi Razer Precision™ 3.5G infrared sensor that offers over four times more precision than a standard 800dpi mouse, the Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition is fully equipped to frag, especially when you strike from the blind side.

Product Features:
• Ergonomic left-hand design
• 3500dpi Razer Precision 3.5G infrared sensor
• 1000Hz Ultrapolling / 1ms response
• Five independently programmable Hyperesponse buttons
• On-The-Fly Sensitivity™ adjustment
• Always-On™ mode
• Ultra-Large non-slip buttons
• 16-bit ultra-wide data path
• 60–120 inches per second and 15g of acceleration
• Zero-Acoustic Ultraslick™ Teflon® feet
• Gold-Plated USB connector
• Seven-Foot, lightweight, braided fiber cable
• Approx. size in mm: 128(L) x 70(W) x 42.5(H)

Razer DeathAdder Left Hand Edition
COST: US $59.99; EU €59.99
AVAILABILITY: Worldwide

For all the information on the Razer Deathadder Left Hand Edition, please visit the official productpage at razerzone.com: Deathadder Left Hand Edition

Hjalmar 'DowaQ' Högberg retires from WarCraft III

It is my sad duty to announce that Hjalmar 'DowaQ' Högberg will be retiring from competitive gaming in order to put more focus on other aspects of his life. This has a tremendous impact on our team, DowaQ was not only a successful player (key to our recent success in WC3L for example), but he was also a player that we have seen grow tremendously throughout the years as we were his first (and now it seems last) ‘pro’ team.

A small recap of DowaQ’s career:

DowaQ has been with us since October 2, 2007, roughly 2.5 years. We recruited him after finishing third at WCG Sweden and second at KODE5 Sweden. Two months after joining he beat Manuel ‘Grubby’ Schenkhuizen at DreamHack Winter 2007, eventually taking second place at the event, losing to Grubby in the grand finals. The first major tournament qualifier he played after joining he won ( ESWC Sweden) and he gained valuable international experience by competing in ESWC 2008 in San Jose, California. The next year he travelled to the ESWC Masters in Cheonan, Korea and would be eliminated in the group stages. This ended up being his last major international LAN tournament despite winning the Swedish WCG 2009 qualifier; which unfortunately did not end up with DowaQ travelling to WCG China.

On a national, European and online level he continued to impress. He took 3rd place place at DreamHack Summer 2009 and 2nd place at the first season of the Scandanivian EPS Series. Online he qualified for and participated in such high profile leagues as the NGL One Individual league and the Extreme Masters. He won two Zotac Cups, editions #79 and #105. Just last week he finished second in the eBet challenge. Possibly the most impressive, he played a vital role in getting Serious Gaming to the consolation finals of WC3L season XVI. He played 1on1 and 2on2 in every single war of the season, beating such players as Future, Check (twice!) and FoCuS. Unfortunately he wont be able to see the season through to the end because of previous commitments he made which collide with the final’s date, but it is imaginable DowaQ and viOlet could have gone all the way.

Serious Gaming will miss you Dowi, hopefully we will see you online from time to time!

Statements:

Hjalmar 'DowaQ' Högberg
I've decided to step away from professional gaming because my love for the game is dead and other interests has taken over. Big thx to my teammates, my managers zerter and basz, they've been great! And last but not least endar for all of his help during my career.

Bas Peeperkorn
Already several weeks ago Hjalle told me about his intention to quit playing Warcraft III competitively. This did not come as a shock, without any big events to play for it is very difficult to keep the motivation needed to perform on the highest level. Hjalle has been more then just a team member, he has spend almost his entire career in Serious, and grew from a raw talent into one of the few undead players in the world to be able to beat worldclass Blademasters. Unfortunately Hjalle did not get the chance to shine a last time during the WC3L finals, without any kind overtalking ESL set a date for the final on which Hjalle already booked a holiday. Our attempts and requests to reschedule were denied. I would like to thank Hjalle for everything he has contributed to the team, and obviously wish him all the best of luck in his future. Hopefully Hjalle will pick up Starcraft II and return to the team as an active player.

Kim ‘viOlet’ Dong Hwan
Greatest player ever DowaQ, all this time we went through together is something to be remembered always as a treasured moment. It makes me sad that we started getting to know each other very well and now having to separate. Anyways I respect your decision and whatever you do from now on I wish you do great on it and make sure you never forget the time we spent together. DowaQ Fighting!

Nikolaus ‘SonKiE’ Cassidy
Dowaq leaving is unfortunate but at the same time reasonable. I can fully understand why he would want to retire. He was a great undead player and will remain a great team mate. I wish him the best of luck in his future adventures!

Kevin ‘RotterdaM’ van der Kooi
I'll keep it short and simple for this one. DowaQ has been a great teammate and a great friend for a long time of me. He's an awesome Wc3 player but I understand his decision, if he feels he has to move along I can only wish him best of luck. Thanks for the great times and I won't forget our times in San Francisco. So long!

Tom 'EndarS' Bramler
DowaQ is probably the most talented player I can think of. What he managed to achieve in the relatively short time he has been within the scene is just remarkable. I have had the great fortune to develop a friendship outside Warcraft with Hjalle. And we have been through a lot of great things outside the game, and that is why I am so happy that even though the scene loses one of its best players, I am still left with one of my best friends.

Oskar ‘Zubie’ Rudberg
I remember when DowaQ first joined Serious. Back then it was obvious the kid got a looot of potential. I followed this prodigy at the beginning, but then I fell of the grid for a while. When I returned I was in awe, seeing he was taking out all those pro-gamers I actually once feared. Not only did he bloom out to become a kick-ass gamer, he is also a gamer which you have a hard time not to like (smiles). Definitely an inspiration for all gamers, and non-gamers, out there.

Av3k faces group of death at IEM day 1

The remaining matches of Group A are postponed to be played after the matches of group B due to technical issues.

Quake fans around the world are glued to their seats as the world championship finals of ESL's Intel Extreme Masters season IV kicks off today. After qualifiers and tournaments around the globe twelve of the world's best players are currently gathered in Cologne, Germany to compete in the biggest QuakeLive event up to date.

Serious / Razer is represented at the event by two players:

Alexey 'Cypher' Yanushevsky, currently ranked 1st worldwide, he is the reigning ESWC world champion Quake, a former QuakeCon champion in QuakeLive and the winner of the European edition of the Intel Extreme Masters.

As well as Maciej 'Av3k' Krzykowski, currently ranked 3rd worldwide, Av3k is the reigning Quake 4 world champion, the youngest ESWC world champion ever as well as the reigning champion of Dreamhack, he took second place at the European edition of the Intel Extreme Masters.

Today will be Av3k's day as he has been seeded in group A, the group of death, and will have to take down a host of professional gamers if he wants to qualify for the play-off phase. The schedule looks as followed:

12:30 CET (matchlink) - Av3k 2-0 Stermy. Stermy is a seasoned professional gamer as he has been a very active particpant on the pro circuit since 2005 where he took 3rd place at the CPL world tour finals. The match is streamed and is watchable at tv.esl.eu.

13:10 CET (matchlink) - Av3k 0-2 Rapha. Rapha is currently ranked 2nd worldwide and has been the dominant QuakeLive player of the past year, winning QuakeCon as well as the first IEM event. Only in the past few months has he shown any signs of being challengeable. The match is streamed and is watchable at tv.esl.eu.

13:30 CET (matchlink) - Av3k faces Jibo. Jibo has been a pro Quake player for years now and consistently dominates Asian events. He won the Asian Extreme Masters in convincing fashion and showed himself up to par with both Cypher and Cooller (ranked 4 worldwide) at the most recent ASUS Cup in Moscow.

14:10 CET (matchlink) - Av3k faces Chance. Chance took third place at the American edition of the Extreme Masters.

14:50 CET (matchlink) - Av3k faces Cooller. Cooller is a two-fold ESWC world champion and has a complicated relationship with Av3k. The young Pole used to cite Cooller as a source of inspiration in the early days of his career but has seen him turn into a main rival as the two competed at many tournaments including the finals of ESWC 2007 (won by Av3k) and the semi-finals of IEM Europe. This match is streamed and watchable at tv.esl.eu.

Cypher's group B will be played out tomorrow. If both players pass the groups they will both see action in the play-off phase of day 3!

Possible 'Newcomer of the Year' viOlet ranked 5th worldwide

Every month the European based gaming website GosuGamers publishes a so called 'GosuGamers' ranking, a overview of the currently best 30 players in the Warcraft III scene. This month one player was noticable for climbing the ladder fast and taking a top position, I speak of course of no other than Serious.Razer's own Kim 'viOlet' DongHwan! He managed to take 5th place after dominating WC3L war after war and winning the sixth season of the XP League.

Of course viOlet is not the only Serious.Razer player in the top 30, our very own Hjalmar 'DowaQ' Högberg currently holds the number 20 slot and could still have a long way to go as he is currently competing in the European Stars War qualifier, the Warcraft 3 Premier League as well as the on-going season of the Warcraft 3 Champions League.

Nevertheless viOlet's quick rise as a player is the most notable one, something with which the annual GosuGamers award agrees. viOlet is one of five nominees for 'Best newcomer of the year 2009' and considered one of the favorites to take home this award. The entire community can help vote to make this a reality for the star player by logging in to GosuGamers and casting a vote in the survey.

For those interested in the complete rankings, they are also located on the GosuGamers website: Warcraft III Rankings.

Serious.Razer beats ieS Virtual Gaming in WC3L play-offs

Today our Warcraft III division played the 2nd round of the lower-bracket of the Warcraft 3 Champions League. We faced ieS, known for having a line-up of some of Korea's strongest professional gamers. The winner would qualify for the lower-bracket finals versus World Elite and would be gauranteed a top four position in the world's most prestigious team league.

We beat ieS with a 4-0 score, thus eliminating them and making the 2on2 as well as any possible ace match redundant. Serious.Razer will now face World Elite somewhere between the 1st and the 7th of march to determine who will face the loser of WMF vs. MYM in the consolation finals of the league.

Our entire WC3L season so far has been:
4-0 ieS Virtual Gaming - Round 2 lower-bracket
4-3 Raptor Gaming - Round 1 lower-bracket
2-4 WeMadeFOX - Round 1 upper-bracket
4-0 Mojawi Gaming - Relegation match
6-1 SK Gaming - Groups
3-4 Team EG - Groups
4-3 Infernal Gamers - Groups
3-4 Against all Authority - Groups