The one thing using a $1,337 gaming mouse has taught me is: we’ve come a long from the old Razer Boomslang, baby

Nostalgia’s a weird, often powerful force. Though not necessarily one for good. Nostalgia can easily filter the past through rose-tinted refactored memories, creating an undeserved sense of positivity around something purely by virtue of the distance of time. And Razer is desperately looking to harness that for the 20th Anniversary Edition of its formative Boomslang mouse. But this limited edition $1,337 gaming mouse just reminds me just how much I always disliked Razer’s old rodents, and makes it all too clear how far along we’ve come in that time. Though the first thing to note is this isn’t really the 20th anniversary of the Boomslang. Razer has missed that by a long way. The original Razer Boomslang was a mouse created by kärna LLC back in 1999, before the original company went bankrupt. The Razer we know today was founded in 2005 by the designers of that original mouse, Robert Krakoff and today’s CEO, Min-Liang Tan.So, really it’s the 27th anniversary, but that doesn’t sound as good, so here we are, pretending the mouse came to life at the same time as Razer became its own thing. Though even then that would make it the 21st anniversary…

Whatever. It’s old. And honestly not that pleasant a mouse to use. It was arguably the device which sprouted off the whole evolutionary fork of dedicated gaming mice, and for that it can be revered. But for its design and actual feel, in 2026 it ought to be reviled.

Though Razer has thrown everything at the new Boomslang; all of the latest gaming mouse tech that has propelled its DeathAdder V4 Pro to the top of our best gaming mouse listing. From the 45K optical sensor at its heart, to the 8K wireless tech, optical switches, wireless charging, and… um… PU leather trim.Which means the insides are about as 2026 as you can get, while the outside shell is achingly 1999, even down to the same semi-transparent green plastic body used by the ol’ Razer Boomslang 2000. And did I mention it has faux leather trim. Yeah, dated.

And I am using the term ‘achingly’ deliberately here, because this is a mouse that is to ergonomics what Jeffrey Dahmer is to haute cuisine. Now, to be fair to Razer here, the ergonomics of late ’90s mice often left a lot to be desired in the first place, so maybe this was an advancement. Though I will say I never found the glorious, ancient Microsoft Intellimouse to be as uncomfortable as the ol’ Boomslang.Still, my long-time issue with Razer gaming mice was always that they forced me to contort my hands, and most especially my fingers, into the most uncomfortable positions to be able to use the damned things. And the Boomslang just serves to remind me why I swerved Razer mice until the Mamba wireless landed on my desk. Even the old DeathAdder, with its upswept main buttons, was most definitely on my gaming mouse shit-list for the longest time.

Now, I’m a convert, because Razer has created gaming mice that work with my particular claw grip style. The Boomslang, however, comes from a time when the palm grip was seen as the only possible way to hold a mouse. And even then, only in that special (read: monumentally weird) way that Jacob holds his mice, with his middle finger permanently sat atop the scrollwheel. Otherwise I have to twist my grip around to be able to reach the side-mounted forward/back buttons.And if I try to go with my standard claw grip? Well, I can then reach those side buttons with thumb and ring finger, but it means I’m actuating those main mouse buttons from so far back along the length of it that speed goes right out of the window.

Competitive? Well, I was never much of a multiplayer shooter aficionado, but I feel as anecdotally hobbled in games as Dr. Fox has felt empowered by the Logitech G Pro X2 Superstrike.And honestly, it’s been such a delight to be able to switch back to the classic DeathAdder V3 Pro that’s been my gaming main at home for years. This is what developed ergonomics feels like, and honestly means the ludicrously priced, and thankfully limited edition 20th Anniversary Boomslang will remain an unused nostalgia piece up on a shelf for the rest of time.