Fnatic and BMW have today revealed the Fnatic x BMW Vision Mouse, a lightweight pro gaming mouse custom-moulded and 3D printed to fit the hand.
An initial limited run has been made for Fnatic’s League of Legends pro team, ‘with future commercial availability dependent on further testing and public interest’.
“While there are no current plans for commercial production, Fnatic will listen to fan feedback and monitor competitive performance,” the org said.
Fnatic says that in a first for the esports industry, each of these mice is unique in that they are ‘ergonomically designed and 3D printed to reflect the player’s hand shape, curvature and grip’.
The level of customisation aims to improve competitive performance through improved control, response and hand comfort.
Each mouse weighs 55g on average, with production time between five months and 1,000 hours on shape development. It then takes 36 hours to produce a mouse.
Fnatic and BMW Designworks joined forces on the project with the shared belief that esports pro gamers should have customised equipment, like pro sport athletes, to give a competitive advantage.
On average, Fnatic says a pro gamer will spend up to 70 hours a week practising or taking part in competitive matches.
“Highly bespoke accessories will allow players to compete better, for longer, with a reduced risk of hand injury. The Fnatic x BMW Vision mouse was designed to meet this need, and as the BMW Group has been successfully using 3D printing technology for more than 25 years, it makes it a perfect partnership,” Fnatic said in a press release.
Mouse customised after 3D scanning players’ hands
Each Fnatic x BMW Vision mouse consists of two parts – the shell and chassis. The shell is unique to every player and is created in two design and manufacture stages.
The design stage is carried out by Fnatic’s product engineer who works with each player to understand their needs to develop a design profile in addition to 3D scanning each of their hands. The profile covers requirements including preferred playstyle, device set-up, and hand ergonomics. An initial shell template is then created, and refined using a trial and error approach until perfected.
A prototype of the shell is 3D printed using SLS 3D printing technology, under the guidance of BMW.
The need to replace the mouse due to wear and tear or because of different ergonomic requirements is no longer a concern, Fnatic says, as the shell can be constantly refined to meet changing needs, with the same materials reused for re-printing and placed on the existing chassis.
The final stage is adding the shell to the chassis of Fnatic’s Bolt mouse.
Another focus when designing the Fnatic x BMW Vision Mouse was on circularity. Based on the expertise of BMW Designworks in this area, the bioplastic Nylon 11 is used for the mouse shell. The mouse chassis is made from recycled components from the Fnatic Bolt mouse.
Hylissang: ‘The Fnatic x BMW Vision mouse is like nothing I’ve seen before’
Zdravets “Hylissang” Iliev Galabov, Fnatic League of Legends pro gamer, commented: “To have the opportunity to use a mouse designed by BMW and Fnatic is awesome. My mouse is a fundamental part of my setup and I see it as an extension of my hand. I need it to be responsive, accurate, and comfortable to support my playstyle and help prevent any fatigue from extended play. The Fnatic x BMW Vision mouse is like nothing I’ve seen before. A mouse that fits only to your hand is unreal.”
Stefan Ponikva, Vice President BMW Brand Communications and Experience, said: “The development project for the Fnatic x BMW Vision Mouse is a very good example of how we define our role in esports. Our know-how should benefit the community, and contribute to the further development of the industry.
“In professional Esports, the key is the performance of the players. 3D manufacturing methods, which we have tried and tested in house, and our experience with sustainable, circular materials are being applied in innovative ways in sport. Together with Fnatic, we are genuinely helping to improve the performance of professional gamers.”
George Barrett, Industrial Designer, Fnatic, commented: “Esports is immensely competitive and the difference between winning and losing can be minute, often mere milliseconds. Being able to own this difference is why we’re constantly looking for ways to give our players that competitive advantage.
“Working with BMW Designworks has given us the opportunity to create a gaming mouse unique to each athlete that seamlessly blends performance, ergonomics, and sustainability like nothing else in the market. On their own, these adjustments would be negligible, but incrementally they can make a real difference to the player’s performance.”
Tom Allemeier, Design Director at Designworks, said: “For us at Designworks, it was particularly attractive that Fnatic and the BMW Esports team were not just looking for material alternatives. They were collectively hungry for an overarching understanding of circularity. The team wanted to learn how an optimal use of materials and the right processes, manufacturing and processing methods could lead to more sustainable results in the future.”
Read more news about Fnatic on Esports News UK here
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
