Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He began his tenure at EA in 1990 and spent almost twenty years contributing to the legendary Burnout and Need for Speed series through Criterion, the studio EA acquired in 2004. Yet in early 2023, Webster, together with fellow Criterion alumni Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires, and Alan McDairmant, chose to strike out on their own and launch the independent UK studio Fuse Games. Just over three years later, the fledgling company stands on the brink of releasing its debut title, *Star Wars: Galactic Racer*, which will be published by the newly independent label Secret Mode.
The timing of *Galactic Racer* is noteworthy. The last Star Wars racing experience, *Racer Revenge*, hit shelves in 2002 – a full twenty‑four years ago.
In the intervening period, the racing genre has lost much of its mainstream appeal. Amazon recently cancelled a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving game *Clutch*, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis stating, “we didn’t see a real fit in the market for that game.” Meanwhile, Criterion, once a powerhouse of arcade‑style racing, has pivoted to focus on the *Battlefield* franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced there is still a hungry audience for a Star Wars‑themed racer.
“We clearly think there’s an audience for a Star Wars racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “We’re not the only ones who feel that, and the response we get from people watching our videos and reading our articles suggests we’re not alone.” He argues that video‑game genres are cyclical.
“We went through a phase where shooters dominated everything, but that’s not the only genre that can thrive. As more people play games, even the tiniest niches can find a larger following.” Webster believes players are craving "fun, interesting, compelling new experiences that they haven’t seen before," and he feels *Galactic Racer* delivers exactly that.
The studio set out to capture the instant gratification of classic arcade racers while also exploring what becomes possible when you free yourself from the constraints of realistic tyres and tarmac. “We have tracks that climb the side of an active volcano,” he explains.
“Sometimes it feels like a roller‑coaster.” Beyond the high‑octane thrills, *Galactic Racer* aims to upend long‑standing conventions of the racing genre. Traditionally, racing games have been built around a car‑collection model that has changed little in two decades.
Webster wants to tear that formula apart and borrow mechanics from other genres. One of the most radical changes is the introduction of meaningful consequences for crashing. In many modern racers, a rewind button eliminates any penalty for a mistake. Fuse wants to bring the risk back: “If you crash too many times, you’re sent back to the start, but you keep some meta‑progression with you, so you’re a little stronger the next run.
When you’re on your last crash, you start weighing the risk versus reward.” The design philosophy also draws heavily from roguelike titles such as *Hades*, *Returnal*, and *Slay the Spire*. Those games are engineered for infinite replayability, a quality that meshes perfectly with racing’s inherent desire for repeated attempts and mastery. By embedding roguelike progression loops, *Galactic Racer* encourages players to experiment, learn from failure, and return stronger—a loop that Webster believes will keep the experience fresh long after launch.
Releasing the game in October also reflects strategic timing. *Galactic Racer* is slated for an October 6 launch, comfortably ahead of the highly anticipated *GTA 6* release on November 19, yet close enough to benefit from the heightened consumer attention surrounding major fall releases such as *Control: Resonance* and *Silent Hill: Townfall*, both arriving on September 24.
Webster acknowledges the crowded calendar but points out that the industry has weathered even busier pre‑Christmas windows before. “People used to call September ‘murderers’ row,’ and October was always packed.
We have a healthy confidence tempered by a realistic view of how things might turn out,” he says. The conversation inevitably turns to the broader industry climate, especially the wave of layoffs that has swept through major publishers. Webster, who has witnessed similar cut‑backs a decade and a half ago, sees a pattern: great teams make great games, and great games find an audience.
He argues that the current risk‑averse environment actually creates opportunities for studios willing to take calculated bets. “If you’re unwilling to gamble, you limit yourself,” he notes, emphasizing that bold ideas can thrive when the status quo is hesitant. Funding, however, has been a significant hurdle for Fuse. Starting an independent studio in 2023 was described by outsiders as “brave.” Webster recalls stepping out of his 32‑year EA bubble and confronting the reality that “access to funding is a real challenge.” His response was to lean on core principles: assemble a talented team, refine a clear creative vision, and maintain disciplined planning—while accepting that any plan will be imperfect and must evolve.
He stresses that an engaged, motivated team is the engine that drives quality. Fuse’s staffing model reflects this philosophy. Rather than building a massive AAA‑size internal studio, the company maintains a core team of roughly 75 people and supplements its capabilities through external development partners.
This approach avoids the typical “grow‑shrink‑grow‑shrink” cycle that plagues many large studios. External collaborators range from transactional outsourcing for asset creation to deep co‑development relationships where partner studios join daily stand‑ups, Slack channels, and even the codebase. Webster highlights the UK’s mature game‑development ecosystem as a fertile ground for such partnerships, noting a cultural shift where studios now willingly collaborate rather than reluctantly share resources. According to Webster, this hybrid model proves that a AAA‑level game—by scope, visual fidelity, and ambition—can be produced on a more sustainable budget.
The rapid development timeline of *Galactic Racer* serves as evidence: Fuse was founded in January 2023, and within three and a half years they built a studio, assembled a team, learned Unreal Engine 5 from scratch, and delivered a full‑featured title. “It feels like an achievement, and we did it in a healthy, sustainable way,” he says. The talent mix at Fuse further underscores the studio’s forward‑looking ethos. While several veteran Criterion developers anchor the team, many younger creators have been hired, including a producer who had never previously worked in games.
Webster praises this fresh perspective: “Our young talent is often smarter and more effective than I was at that age. We’ve had greater success with them than with some senior hires.” He observes that seasoned developers sometimes prefer to work alongside peers of similar seniority, which can limit mentorship opportunities. In contrast, nurturing younger staff energizes both the newcomers and the veterans.
Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship pipeline to continue feeding the studio with emerging talent, though he admits the company is still pre‑revenue and financially cautious. He references Criterion’s successful intern programs as a model, acknowledging that developing talent incurs costs that must be weighed against long‑term benefits.
Reflecting on a period five or six years ago when the industry enjoyed abundant capital, Webster recalls how many “super‑successful” developers were handed funding to start their own studios, only to discover the reality was far tougher than anticipated. He argues that money should have been allocated to strong teams rather than to a myth of the singular creative visionary—a notion he calls “fucking bullshit.” In his view, games are collaborative endeavors, not the product of lone geniuses. As for Fuse’s next steps, Webster remains deliberately vague. The launch of *Star Wars: Galactic Racer* is just the beginning, and the studio is open to exploring new opportunities while staying flexible and adaptable—qualities he deems essential for independent developers in today’s market.