Republic of Gamers PAX West 2018 Highlights

It was a busy four days for the Republic of Gamers (ROG) team at PAX West 2018. Its meticulously structured booth, complete with gaming stations and product demos, was filled with curious gamers throughout the four-day event. Gamers were greeted with hands-on demos of ROG’s upcoming gaming hardware, as well as giveaway contests and gaming parties. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights of the ROG Booth.  

After passing rigorous trials, the final members of Team NA were recruited through the Join the Republic community challenge. The Join the Republic challenge lets everyday gamers duke it out for the opportunity to go pro and compete against some of the best esports players out there.  Team NA’s captain, the veteran CS:GO player Erik Flom, personally battle-tested his newest members at the ROG eSports Desk. In time, his team will represent North America and compete against seven others at the Republic CS:GO Finals in Sweden.

Following the successful conclusion to team Fl0m’s recruitment, ROG opened up the eSports booth to the public. Gamers were invited to participate in intense Fortnite sessions on the same bleeding-edge hardware used by the pros.

The ROG booth also saw daily giveaways. Prizes ranged from action figures and gaming gear, to knick-knacks and accessories. Did you manage to win some cool swag? Let ROG know by tagging them on Facebook and Instagram.

The hype driven by gamers was impressive, but ROG also added excitement of its own through the presentation of a slew of its upcoming gaming hardware. These ranged from phones, to laptops, to RGB-infused coolers.

The ROG booth also saw daily giveaways. Prizes ranged from action figures and gaming gear, to knick-knacks and accessories. Did you manage to win some cool swag? Let ROG know by tagging them on Facebook and Instagram.

The hype driven by gamers was impressive, but ROG also added excitement of its own through the presentation of a slew of its upcoming gaming hardware. These ranged from phones, to laptops, to RGB-infused coolers.

The new ROG phone was definitely a showstopper at PAX. At its core is a top of the line Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 845 mobile SoC. Each Snapdragon 845 in the ROG Phone are binned for the highest quality. Due to this, its CPU is capable of performing at a higher 2.96GHz clock speed – 5.7% faster than the reference chip. To fully unleash its power, the ROG Phone comes with a 90Hz HDR AMOLED display with a 1ms response time, up to 512GB of UFS 2.1 storage, 8GB of RAM, a massive 4000mAh battery, and front-facing speakers. The phone also has a host of optional accessories to enhance your gaming experience, including the detachable AeroActive Cooler, a separate attachment that boosts cooling and ensures the phone stays at peak performance, and a desktop dock that allows you to build a complete desktop around the phone.

Next, gamers were given a taste of the brand new ROG Zephyrus S GX531 gaming laptop. The immediate impression by most was just how portable it is. With a profile measuring just 15.75mm, it’s the thinnest gaming laptop in its class. The ultra-thin screen bezels help reduce its footprint, allowing it to fit into smaller bags. As small as it may be, it packs a ton of power. With a 6-core Intel® Core™ i7-8750H processor and Nvidia GTX 1070 Max-Q graphics, gamers can expect uncompromising performance. The Zephyrus is visually stunning, too, leveraging a ultra-fast, 1080p, 144Hz IPS display with a 3ms response time.

Placed immediately next to the Zephyrus S GX531 was the new 17-inch ROG Strix Scar II gaming laptop. Just like the pre-existing 15-inch Strix Scar II, the 17-inch variant of the Strix Scar II also features a thin-bezel screen, making it much more compact than a standard 17-inch laptop. It can also be configured to include the Intel® Core™ i7-8750H processor and up to Nvidia GTX 1060 graphics.

Both the ROG Zephyrus S GX531 and the ROG Strix Scar II 17 are available for pre-order through ASUS’ website. For a limited time, ordering either nets you the ROG Pugio RGB ambidextrous gaming mouse.

Also appearing at the booth were the ROG Ryujin and ROG Ryuo all-in-one liquid coolers. Their special feature is a 1.7-inch LCD screen that can be user-programmed to show thermal stats, diagnostic codes, or even your name and custom logos. In addition to the high-end Noctua fans installed on the radiator, the Ryujin has an extra fan on the processor cooling block. This extra fan increases airflow to the motherboard and storage drives, helping to cool your entire system. The ROG Ryujin will be available in 360mm and 240mm models while the ROG Ryuo will be available in 240mm and 120mm models.

Lastly, ROG gave a sneak peek of their latest Stealth series apparel line up at PAX West where fans were able get a first hand look and purchase the products directly in the ROG Gear Shop.  You can literally wear your ROG pride on your sleeve with the latest gaming wear items which includes T-shirts, pullovers, and windbreaker which will be made available online soon for purchase. 

All-in-all, PAX West 2018 was a tremendous success for ROG. There were many more thrilling moments during the four-day show, but unfortunately, words could only convey so much. The true excitement could only be felt through attendance. Those looking towards the horizon for the next ROG event should register for the ROG2BlizzCon contest. The winner of this contest will receive an all-expense-paid trip to BlizzCon 2018 for two. All that’s required to enter is a photoset of you donning your best costume. Check out more details here.