Software

Just recently, the trusty old SteelSeries Engine has been integrated into an overarching software suite called SteelSeries GG. As of now, GG only provides access to two different applications: Engine and "Moments," which can be used to clip worthwhile in-game moments. Moments requires a SteelSeries account to work, which is why one is prompted to create one upon first launching GG. If one doesn't intend to use Moments, account creation can be safely skipped and Engine used without any restrictions. However, when using GG at all, SteelSeries reserves the right to collect anonymous data about user behavior without the option to opt out. Luckily, said data collection is tied to an account, so as long as no account is created, no data will be collected.


Engine itself hasn't received any changes. All available options are still accessible on a single page. All buttons can be remapped to mouse, keyboard, media, OS, or macro functions. The corresponding macro editor can be found right below the button selection. CPI adjustment is possible in a range from 100 to 18,000 CPI, in increments of 100, and for up to five color-coded levels; i.e., a non-user-configurable color will light up upon switching CPI steps. Furthermore, a basic acceleration function, angle snapping (on/off), and polling rate adjustment (125, 250, 500, or 1000 Hz) are available. Lighting settings are detailed below.

When applied, all settings are saved to the on-board memory, so the software does not need to be running (or be installed) all the time. On my system, GG running without Engine results in a RAM footprint of 236 MB when in the foreground, which doesn't change when minimized. With Engine running on top, the RAM footprint increases to 293 MB on average, which again doesn't change when minimized. Upon closing GG, the application is effectively minimized to the system tray, which has three processes with a RAM footprint of 70 MB running. Upon exiting the application altogether, all processes are terminated, as they should be. However, upon restarting the system, and for whatever reason, a single process with a footprint of 6 MB is running. And even more weirdly, I need to kill that process before starting GG as it otherwise refuses to launch.

Lighting

The Rival 5 has four physical lighting zones, which are the scroll wheel, logo at the back, and two stripes, and no less than ten logical lighting zones. When selecting an RGB lighting effect, make sure to select all or at least one of these zones as no effect will be applied otherwise. Three pre-defined lighting effects in total are available in the software. These are Steady (single color), Color Shift, and Multi Color Breathe. Furthermore, a trigger effect can be combined with each of those effects. All effects can be further customized in terms of speed and colors. Of course, it is also possible to disable the lighting altogether.

Color accuracy and vibrancy are excellent throughout. Here's a short demonstration video in which I go through the ColorShift and Multi Color Breathe lighting effects: