[Review] The new Razer | Pokémon Collection is a deliciously designed series of gear

The latest Pokémon take on Razer’s products finally comes West with a gorgeous original starter pattern across its line.

I hadn’t been much of a hardware guy until very recent years, when I started working from home more regularly. It was at that point I realized that I needed new equipment, new hardware that was better than the $5 headset and $10 mouse I was using. I grabbed increasingly better gear, noticing the quaility improving and the aesthetics nice enough to start showing them off. I own a bunch of Razer gear already, but none of the Pokémon stuff — because that wasn’t available in the US yet.

Now it’s finally here and the wait was worth it.

As a general design, the products all carry the same pattern on them with a mosaic featuring the faces of the famous starter Pokémon: Charmander, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Pikachu. The art places Pikachu front and center as the series’ main mascot, but all of the ‘Mon are nicely rendered, each with multiple expressions that are fun to point out. The graphic is stretched out across panels and plates on all the products, but it’s most striking on the mouse pad and the keyboard, where it’s also most visible.

The Pikachu yellow is also stunning and, because it’s always proportionally paired with the graphic it’s also surprisingly not overpowering. Sure, we’re going to stick out on a stream, but that’s kind of the point, and so is that once we’ve placed these on a desk or a headset hook they’re supposed to stand out. This is a playful set, because Pokémon is playful, but it’s not gawdy. The best example is perhaps in the headset, where the yellow adorns the exterior of the cans and on the padding at the top. It’s elegant enough that it doesn’t feel like something that a young child would use (and, frankly, this gear isn’t aimed at that group anyways). It’s good looking stuff.

Diving into the details of the actual function is the real sauce here.

Razer BlackWidow V4 X – Pokémon Edition

The BlackWidow keyboard is a full-size mechanical, with A LOT of sound coming from the interchangeable keys. It’s incredibly solid, and feels like something more than the plastic it’s made from. I’d never really spent too much time with a mechanical keyboard until using this, and immediately fell in love. The height of the keys and the depth of their drop gives us that distinct KLICKY KLACKY sound, and after only an hour or so I was fully finding my way around. The RGB lighting glows out from underneath them in an almost ominous way, yet the way it cascades onto the pattern makes it just as enjoyably chaotic.

The keyboard’s programmability is great, too. While the rotating cylinder at the top right of the board comes synced to audio levels, I adjusted it to let me zoom in and out quicker in software like Photoshop, which I’m in just as much as I’m gaming, or as a way to scroll a browser. As with any relationship, though, there’s always going to be a slight bump, and it’s almost always self-inflicted, as it is here too. I’ve spent 40 years placing my left hand at the edge of keyboards, and my pinky in a very specific spot, and because of the inclusion of programmable hot keys along that left side I kept tapping those instead of my usual SHIFT and TAB. It takes a short bit of relearning how to type, and those keys eventually became helpful to how I accessed tools in creative software.

Razer Kraken V4 X – Pokémon Edition

The Kraken headset is perhaps my favorite item in the collection. Not only is it gorgeous, but it fits so well on my head, and the audio quality coming in through the cans is way better than what I had been using. It does activate a new installation process to get them configured properly; in the video above they default to a tinny microphone because they’re not fully set up, meaning they’re not necessarily plug and play.

The material quality is great. The ear liners are soft, and because of how the panels are joined they’re not going to crack and fray and fall apart at the edges. And the soft band at the top really is comfortable. The textures used throughout, from the stipple on the outside of the cans to the hex on the headband, are nice details.

Razer Cobra – Pokémon Edition

The Cobra is a solid wired mouse. It isn’t packed with features, focusing on the basics of what a modern mouse has, but it gets done what it intends to do: be a lightweight wired mouse with easy access to key buttons. The scroll wheel’s surface is soft and grippy, and the overall shape is curved well for my palm. It’s not a mouse that is going to wow anyone for competitive gaming, but it’s a good starter for those that are getting into spending more time with their computers.

Razer Gigantus V2 – Medium – Pokémon Edition

What is there to say about the mouse pad? It’s huge, hence the name, but it’s a great quality. I’m actually not used to a mouse pad that large, and had to rearrange my desk a little to fit it, but once I did I enjoyed having that same pattern on there to match the mouse on top of it and the keyboard to its left.

I haven’t spilled anything on it (yet) so that’s a solid win for a klutz like me.

Switch 2 Surprise

I was curious if these products would work with the recently released Switch to, and to my suprise they certainly do — mostly.

I plugged the keyboard into the USB-C port on top and found it functional with most of its keys, making typing in the eShop search bar and in inputs in games very easy. The macro keys and interactive bar don’t do anything, but the keyboard does light up, so that’s a nice visual plus when on a coffee table. The headset also worked, at least in audio quality. I haven’t had the chance to try the GameChat yet because I don’t know many folk using the function. I’ll hopefully dive in this weekend with some SideQuesting friends during our game nights. The mouse worked, too! Now, it doesn’t (currently) function around the Switch 2’s home screen, in menus and in the eShop but it does in supported games, including the newly released Mario Paint in the Super Nintendo Classics app.

The fact that I can use all of these items on my PC, or even turn my Switch 2 into a sort of “light” desktop, is a great motivator for folks that want to fully make use of their gaming devices in as many ways as possible. With devices that look this fun, it’s probably best to show them off as much as possible.

This review is based on products sent to SideQuesting by Razer. Images and video courtesy Razer, The Pokemon Company and SideQuesting. This video first appeared on The SideQuest Live for July 22, 2025.