Razer Launches Digital Game Store With zGold Payment Options

Razer announced that it would now offer gaming content from some of the top publishers in a new digital game store called the Razer Game Store.

A Store With More?

The Razer Game Store is similar to other PC game marketplaces such as Steam, Origin, and Uplay, and it features thousands of PC game titles from some of the most popular developers and publishers, including Ubisoft, Bethesda, Bandai Namco, SEGA, Rockstar, and more. Razer’s platform gives users access to exclusive offers, vouchers, discounted Razer gear, and other various perks. You can purchase games such as Dragon Ball FighterZ, GTA V, Ghost Recon: Wildlands, and Dishonored: Death of the Outsider with a credit card or Razer’s proprietary digital currency, zGold.

Razer’s zGold is a digital currency that debuted with zVault, a payment and customer reward platform that the company launched early last year. The primary currency (zGold) has a set conversion rate ($1 USD = 100 zGold) and was originally used to purchase activation keys or in-game items for a select few games and publishers, or Razer-branded peripherals at the company’s online store. However, now you can use the digital currency to purchase a vast selection of gaming content online, and every purchase you make from the Razer Game Store will give you zSilver, a secondary reward currency that can be used to purchase Razer gear (keyboards, mice, mouse pads, headsets) or discounts on higher-priced items (laptops) from the company’s RazerStore. However, paying for games with zGold at the Game Store earns you extra zSilver, incentivizing the use of the company’s cash-based digital currency.

Razer is making a play in an already saturated PC game catalog market. Larger publishers have created similar platforms for their own franchises (Ubisoft), and some of the online marketplaces can get most games regardless of the developer/publisher (Steam). However, few offer reward currencies that equate to tangible product purchases, with platforms such as Origin and Uplay giving out proprietary points that equate to little more than an achievement that rewards only the illusion of prestige when you purchase a game. Razer may be in untested waters with the new endeavor, but it seems to be taking the right kind of steps to ensure that it will be a hit with gamers and its 22 million registered users who might be looking to get game discounts and reward currency that can be used for Razer products.

“As gamers, we know the importance of a good deal and the Razer Game Store delivers that to everyone,” said Min-Liang Tan, Razer co-founder and CEO. “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.”

Launch Specials & Exclusives

Razer also announced that it would be offering special deals on select game titles at launch. The company teamed with Ubisoft for its initial launch special, with discounts on some of the publisher’s most notorious titles, including Assassin’s Creed: Origins, Watch Dogs 2, Far Cry 4, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and Steep. Far Cry 5, Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, and other titles will also be discounted up to 50% and will include a voucher up to $15, double zSilver rewards, and a $10 coupon for peripherals from the RazerStore.

The Razer Game Store goes live today in the U.S., UK, Germany, and France. Razer will give away 10,000 copies of Furi, an indie action game, to the first 10,000 people who sign up to the Razer Game Store via this referral link.