CES 2019 Update: Razer’s Nari Ultimate Headset Promises Fully Immersive Gaming—and Leet Hax

I tested the Razer Nari Ultimate at CES this year, and the possibilities for even more immersive gameplay thanks to the haptic feedback tech blew my mind. (Yup, I texted my PUBG-playing buddies right then and there to gush about it.)

Remember the N64 Rumble Pak? That’s right, that huge attachment on your controller that would rumble whenever someone shot at you in Quake.

Turns out the Rumble Pak has grown up right alongside us—only now it’s fully integrated into the Nari Ultimate. Cue the ‘90s nostalgia feels.

Thanks to Razer HyperSense, which uses haptic feedback technology, the Nari Ultimate converts in-game sounds into real-time rumbling. And it’s directional too. Yup, we’re talking a leet advantage over the enemy team.

Is the enemy team set up behind cover? You’ll feel rumbles by your right ear as they snipe at you in Fortnite, helping you pinpoint their location.

Or, let’s say you’re scavenging a building for gear in a Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) match. There’s no chance you’ll miss footsteps on the floor above you thanks to a low, rumbling warning.

But even with the coolest technology, a headset isn’t great unless it’s comfortable and delivers epic-quality sound, right? Right. Thankfully, the Razer Nari Ultimate checks both those boxes.

My first impression was of just how light the headset is. It has an aluminum frame that’s lightweight enough to wear for a day-long gaming session—but will also hold up if you nerd rage on it.

Along with the weight, I was truly impressed with the fit. Admission time: I have a smaller-than-average head. (“One size fits all” is a lie.) Either I deal with headsets that clamp down on my temples, or the headset ends up on the floor every time I tilt my head.

The Nari Ultimate’s gel-cushioned ear cups fit well over my ears, though they felt a little large at first. But I quickly grew accustomed to them since the whole headset was light as a feather. Tilting my head from side to side didn’t change a thing—the Nari Ultimate stayed put.

As for sound, the Nari Ultimate piped in crystal-clear audio from a YouTube video—even with the hubbub of thousands of CES attendees around me.

The THX Spatial Audio feature also looks promising: it buffs your in-game auditory senses by broadcasting sound in a 360-degree sphere around you. Can you imagine playing already immersive games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, God of War, or The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim with that?

TL;DR? The Razer Nari Ultimate won a chicken dinner in my book. So don’t be surprised if my currently underwhelming headset mysteriously suffers an untimely death and the Nari Ultimate shows up on my desk to replace it.

View Razer Nari Ultimate on Amazon