The Razer Kraken Tournament Edition - the wired competitive gaming headset with full audio controls

(Image credit: Razer)

Getting a top gaming headset can make or break the modern gaming experience. Gone are the days where the all-singing, all-dancing headsets were just for players who only play online multiplayer games and must shout down the mic to be heard, only really using the headphones for communicating with teammates. Now, a quality headset can go a long way in enhancing any gaming experience, single- or multiplayer. And if you do any searching at all you'll soon find that headsets from Razer are the cream that quickly rise to the top of any list. And if you're after one of the best out of Razer's immense armory - and one that won't break the bank - then the Razer Kraken Tournament Edition is for you. This is an incredible value-for-money headset that is also one of the best in the business: it offers some of the best game audio going; it's a brilliant all-rounder; and it's compatible with any gaming device. A strong start, but it's easy to see why this is true…..  

(Image credit: Razer)

The Kraken Tournament Edition is fitted with 50mm drivers to heighten immersion in any single player game: from the games with wonderfully rich soundscapes like Red Dead 2; to the delicate sounds of weather and people in Assassin's Creed Odyssey; and to the sounds of gunfire and enemies in online shooters like Destiny 2 and Apex Legends. In multiplayer games, the Kraken TE handles those subtle audio cues with immense clarity, enabling you to tell precisely where your enemy is coming from, giving you a match winning advantage. And let’s not forget comms: the unidirectional microphone cuts out environment noise, so your teammates can hear you shout calls and directions easily. Whatever you play, the Kraken Tournament Edition will be a formidable companion.

This headset exemplifies the advancements and refinements that Razer have made to their range of headsets - and the fact that they don't cost gamers an arm and a leg to enjoy them; there's no price barrier here. In fact, quite the opposite, the value for money is blinding: for its price tag of less than £100, you get a whole lot of headset for your money. Starting at the top, the main structure of the headset is comprised of the exquisitely finished and custom-tuned 50mm drivers delivering the quality audio direct to you brain; kept cosy in solid, Razer-designed ear cups that are coupled with one of the lightest and latest headbands. This band offers excellent padding and is augmented by the cooling-gel cushions ensuring great comfort in those longer play sessions. Moving down, the full audio controls offer an enormous range of customisation that you can make on the fly - no quitting to menus to make your adjustments here, just a quick swivel of the dials or flick of the controls are needed to find the perfect balance and mix for whatever your playing.

(Image credit: Razer)

The audio surround sound is crisp, clear and enables you to make decisive movements and strategies in-game. This is powered by the excellent THX Spatial Audio (optimised for PC) that is built in to the Kraken Tournament Edition - why can't you have what the esports pros rely on too? This audio makeup is Razer's premium audio and will keep you future proof, regardless of what future games and the next generation of consoles and hardware throws at you. It really is a headset built with busy online games like Fortnite, Apex Legends and The Division 2 in mind. However, while the audio execution will remove you from our reality and immerse you in your games, the element of communication is critical to playing games too: the retractable mic is easy to use and provides a crystal clear transmission of your voice to your teammates, and is combined with an often-overlooked and incredibly useful Game/Chat balance function. This is ideal for ensuring you have the right mix of in-game audio and teammate communication to be at your most effective, no matter what you're doing.  

(Image credit: Razer)

And to finish it off, you can get the benefit of all of this on any platform: the Razer Kraken Tournament Edition is so versatile it's compatible with all the major consoles, PC and Mac, and mobile devices too. So there's nothing it can't do, and whatever the end of 2019 brings you hardware-wise, a Kraken Tournament Edition headset will be one of the best companion peripherals you can add to your setup. This is an incredible package from Razer, making it, in a very strong field, one of the most desirable peripherals you can get from Razer.

You can grab the Razer Kraken Tournament Edition for a value-busting price from Razer - along with a whole host of the gaming hardware behemoth's other peripherals and machines - right here