Razer launches Game Store key resale site

Once-and-former gaming peripherals specialist Razer has announced yet another string to its increasingly unwieldy bow: a sales platform for commercial games.

Although Razer is best known for its gaming peripherals, the company has been working hard to diversify in recent years: As well as smartphones, laptops, and interesting prototype devices which never seem to see the light of day, the company has launched ventures which include open source virtual reality technology, video capture, and even music production and distribution.

It's this latter venture, launched in October 2015, which may have given Razer the taste for digital distribution and thus triggered its most recent platform announcement: a digital games store offering the latest titles alongside a reward program tied to its in-house cryptocurrencies zGold and zSilver.

'As gamers, we know the importance of a good deal and the Razer Game Store delivers that to everyone,' claims Min-Liang Tan, Razer's co-founder and chief executive officer, of his company's latest venture. 'We have been delighting gamers with our high-performing peripherals, laptops and software, and we're now also able to provide the content itself that fuels their passion.'

Interestingly, while Razer's Game Store acts as the point-of-sale for a range of titles, it isn't actually handling the distribution of the zeros and ones that make up the game itself. Instead, the company is reselling game keys redeemable on Valve's Steam and Ubisoft's Uplay platforms - but, it promises, without the risk of getting a fraudulently-acquired key that can be found on other reseller sites.

Those buying titles through the site, rather than directly on Steam and Uplay, will be rewarded for their loyalty with vouchers, hardware discounts, and semi-'cashback' in the form of the company's zSilver cryptocurrency. For those who are in to the Razer ecosystem deep, payment can be made in the zGold cryptocurrency - which, Razer promises, will dramatically increase the amount of zSilver rewarded from a given purchase.

Razer is launching its game store in the US, UK, Germany, and France now, with pan-European support provided via an English-language version of the site priced in Euros. Global users are, Razer has confirmed, welcome to use the company's global storefront, which prices its goods in US Dollars. The company has also announced a range of launch promotions, including discounts on Ubisoft games, 'Razer Exclusive' pricing on selected games with Razer Store hardware vouchers included, and a giveaway for Furi Steam keys.

More information is available on the official website, while those making a purchase can get 15 percent off using the code RGSLAUNCH15.