Robert “RazerGuy” Krakoff, Razer co-founder and gaming mouse pioneer, has died at the age of 81.
Krakoff passed away on April 26, 2022, and Razer shared a message on Twitter announcing the sad news.
“We are saddened by the passing of co-founder and Chairman Emeritus Robert Krakoff, known to all as RazerGuy,” Razer wrote. “Robert’s unwavering drive and passion for gaming lives on and continues to inspire us all. Thank you Rob, you will be missed.”
We are saddened by the passing of co-founder and Chairman Emeritus, Robert Krakoff, known to all as RazerGuy. Robert’s unwavering drive and passion for gaming lives on and continues to inspire us all.
Thanks Rob, we will miss you. pic.twitter.com/2HKNcFaOj2
— R Λ Z Ξ R (@Razer) April 28, 2022
As The Verge reported, Krakoff was instrumental in bringing the first gaming mouse, the Razer Boomslang, to market in 1999. Krakoff was working for Kärna at the time, a company that invented an “opto-mechanical encoding wheel that could track the movement of a mouse”. movements at 2000 dpi, a much higher resolution than other mice at the time.”
Krakoff didn’t create the Razer Boomslang, but he was a key figure in making it happen alongside a marketing agency called Fitch that essentially launched the Razer brand we know today. This includes the name, the three-headed serpent logo, the website, the packaging, and the design and engineering of the Boomslang mouse.
Kärna went bankrupt in 2001 and Krakoff would go on to co-found Razer with current Razer CEO Min-Lian Tan in 2005.
At Razer, Krakoff would become the public face of the company and not only includes a message from RazerGuy with Razer products, but also added your email to the note. He was also known for interviewing emerging journalists and even giving some of them jobs.
Following his time at Razer, he would start a company MindFX Science, which focused on energy drinks and supplements in hopes of selling a “healthy alternative to high-caffeine energy drinks and pre-workout products.”
He was also a published author under the name RM Krakoff, writing a dozen books as of 2009 ranging from fiction to non-fiction.
Krakoff is survived by his wife, Dr. Patsi Krakoff, his two sons, Scott and Robin, and five “very cool” grandchildren.
Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and in Twitch.