It’s weird when you start thinking that ASUS formed the Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand in 2006, a whopping 13 years ago. Even more baffling is the fact that, with a few notable exceptions, the brand is still going strong today. The Asus ROG Gladius II is one of the leading products the ROG line, and we’ll tell you why in the following article. Here’s our comprehensive ASUS ROG Gladius II review.

What we played: Playerunkown’s Battlegrouds, Rainbow Six: Siege

*This item was not provided by Asus. It was purchased by Unleash The Gamer for review purposes only.

COMFORT

While the ASUS ROG Gladius II is unsuited for left-handed people, its right-hand centric design means that it feels extra comfortable for people who are, well, right-handed. It feels great in the hand, regardless of what grip you use. You can reach all the buttons without needing to readjust your hand-position even a millimeter thanks to its streamlined and ergonomic design. Another great thing about it is that it’s sculpted with all hand sizes in mind thanks to the clever button placement.

DESIGN

The Asus ROG Gladius II follows the design patterns established by the ROG line. It’s rather subdued in some respects, and over-the-top in others.

It doesn’t feature a staggering number of buttons like, say, the Corsair Dark Core SE, but it has enough of them to make it flexible and compatible with a wide variety of genres. It has a greyish finish that feels smooth to the touch, with rubber side grips and scroll wheel.

However, the design does have its flaws, if you can call them that. Its asymmetrical design is not suited for left-handed people, even if the placement of the lateral buttons theoretically supports this.

It isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker, but you should take this fact into consideration before buying the ASUS ROG Gladius II.

COMPACTNESS

After extensive testing, I personally believe it’s safe to declare that the ASUS ROG Gladius II can be considered a compact gaming mouse. It’s big enough to accommodate a wide variety of hand sizes and types of grips, but small enough as to not make your already cluttered desk more cluttered. While some people may accidentally press the lateral buttons, the manufacturers have made the lateral sides spacious enough as to render such an event a mere rarity.

Build

The next talking point in our Asus ROG Gladius II review is the build. Weighing roughly 120 grams, the ASUS ROG Gladius II leans toward the heavier side, so if you’re an avid MOBA or RTS player, you may want to look for something else, preferably lighter. For these types of games, we can’t recommend the Razer Deathadder Elite and the Corsair Dark Core SE enough.

However unsuited it may be for strategy games, the Gladius II performs marvelously in twitchy shooters such as Rainbow Six: Siege and Apex Legends. Even in Mordhau it performs superbly, as its weighty build complements the game’s methodical and physics-based combat.

CUSTOMIZATION

Right out of the box, the Gladius II features buttons for forward and backward clicks (really handy when browsing) and a DPI Shift button, which is for adjusting the DPI and sensitivity on the go. The mouse has another button for this exact same function right below the scroll wheel, but it’s awkward to reach, especially during multiplayer games.

On the bright side, it’s nice that they’ve added an alternative. When it comes to customization, users can fiddle with the mouse’s settings by using Asus’s Armoury software. Each button function can be changed to the user’s wish. Users can customize everything from keyboard functions, Windows shortcuts to media buttons and, most importantly, recordable macros.

Another thing that I’d like to add here is that Asus’s software is incredibly well optimized. It allows three different mouse profiles, and the options to switch between them quickly by holding down the DPI button below the scroll wheel (yes, the one we’ve mentioned before). The switches can be replaced without much hassle, significantly prolonging its life span.

Also worth mentioning is Asus’s Aura Sync feature, which you can use to syncronize different Asus peripherals between them for that sweet, sweet RGB madness. All in all, the ASUS ROG Gladius II is one of the better choices out there for people who like to customize their mice.

NOISE

Can you safely game with the ROG Gladius II without causing a racket and annoying your roommates? Yes and no. While the buttons can be considered a little noisy, it’ll be really hard to disturb someone. Add a pair of headphones into the mix and you’ll have a better chance hearing a needle fall on the ground three kilometers away than the clicks.

CONCLUSION

This concludes our Asus ROG Gladius II review. The ROG Gladius II is an accurate mouse with a great ergonomic design which offers consistent performance and tons of customization options. All in all, we strongly recommend this mouse, especially for avid FPS who’ll surely find its weighty build and macros very useful.