Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He began his journey with the publisher back in 1990 and spent nearly twenty years contributing to the iconic Burnout and Need for Speed franchises while they were under the Criterion banner, a studio EA acquired in 2004.
Yet in early 2023 he, along with fellow Criterion alumni Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires and Alan McDairmant, decided to leave that long‑standing environment and launch an independent UK studio called Fuse Games. Three and a half years later the fledgling company is poised to ship its debut title, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, which will be published by the newly autonomous label Secret Mode. Galactic Racer arrives roughly 24 years after the last Star Wars‑themed racing game, 2002’s Racer Revenge, and it does so at a moment when the racing genre has generally slipped out of the mainstream spotlight.
Recent industry news underscores this trend: Amazon abandoned a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis remarking that the project didn’t seem to fit the current market. Meanwhile, Criterion itself has pivoted away from pure racing experiences to focus on the Battlefield franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced there is a viable audience for a Star Wars racing adventure.
“We clearly think there’s a demand for a Star Wars‑based racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “We’re not the only ones who feel that way, and the response we get from people watching our videos and reading our articles suggests we’re not alone.” He points out that genres tend to be cyclical.
After a period dominated by shooters, other types of games inevitably re‑emerge, especially as the overall player base expands and even the tiniest niches can find a sizable following. According to Webster, gamers today are hungry for "fun, interesting, compelling new experiences that they haven’t seen before," and he believes Galactic Racer delivers exactly that. The team set out to capture the instant gratification of classic arcade racing while also exploring what becomes possible when you are no longer bound by realistic tires and tarmac. "We have tracks that climb the side of an active volcano," he explains.
"Sometimes it feels more like a roller‑coaster than a conventional circuit." Beyond the high‑octane thrills, Galactic Racer aims to upend long‑standing conventions of the racing genre. Traditionally, racing games have relied on a car‑collection model that has changed little for two decades.
Webster wants to tear that formula apart and borrow mechanics from other genres. One of the most significant innovations is the emphasis on consequential decision‑making, particularly around crashes. In many modern racers, a rewind button can erase mistakes, diluting the impact of failure. Fuse Games intends to re‑introduce real consequences: crashing too often sends you back to the start, though you retain some meta‑progression that makes your subsequent run slightly stronger.
This risk‑reward loop forces players to weigh each maneuver carefully, especially when they are on their final allowed crash. The game’s design also draws inspiration from roguelike titles such as Hades, Returnal, and Slay the Spire—games built around infinite replayability. "Racing thrives on replayability," Webster notes, "so marrying it with roguelike principles feels like a perfect match." By integrating procedural elements, persistent upgrades, and a death‑penalty system, Galactic Racer seeks to keep each race feeling fresh while rewarding skill and strategic planning. Webster acknowledges that this approach represents a bold departure from the hand‑holding that has become common in AAA releases.
He also recognizes the timing challenge: the game will launch on October 6, a respectable window before the highly anticipated GTA 6 release on November 19, yet still close to other major titles like Control: Resonance and Silent Hill: Townfall, both slated for September 24. "September always looks busy," he recalls, "but I remember years ago people calling October ‘Murderer’s Row’ because it was packed with releases. We’re aware of the competition, but we have a healthy confidence tempered by realism." When asked about the wave of layoffs sweeping the industry, Webster reflects on his own long tenure.
He remembers a similar downsizing period fifteen years ago and observes that great teams produce great games, which in turn find an audience. "What we’re seeing now is a risk‑averse climate," he says.
"That creates opportunities for studios willing to take calculated bets. If you shy away from risk, you limit your chances of success." Launching a new studio in 2023 has not been without hurdles. Funding proved difficult to secure, and many questioned the wisdom of starting an independent studio at that moment.
Webster admits the transition was a steep learning curve after spending 32 years at EA. He distilled his experience into a set of guiding principles: assemble a talented team, hone a clear creative vision, build a disciplined yet flexible plan, and stay true to core values while adapting as needed. He emphasizes that engaged, motivated talent is the engine of great games.
Fuse Games operates with a relatively lean core—around 75 people—by design. Rather than inflating the staff size only to shrink it later, the studio relies heavily on external development partners to fill gaps. This hybrid model blends pure outsourcing for asset creation with deeper co‑development relationships where external studios participate in daily stand‑ups, Slack channels, and even share portions of the code base. Webster highlights the United Kingdom as an especially fertile ground for such collaboration, noting that the local industry has matured from reluctant, contract‑only assistance to enthusiastic, cross‑team partnerships.
From his perspective, this small‑core‑plus‑trusted‑partners approach can deliver AAA‑level scope, scale, and visual fidelity on a sustainable budget. The rapid development timeline of Galactic Racer—starting in January 2023 and reaching a launch-ready state in just three and a half years—serves as proof of concept.
"We built a studio, a team, and a game on Unreal Engine 5, a technology none of us had mastered at the outset. It feels like an achievement, and we did it in a healthy, sustainable way," Webster says.
Another noteworthy aspect of Fuse’s strategy is its emphasis on younger developers. While the studio includes several Criterion veterans, many of its team members are fresh faces, some even coming from outside the gaming industry. One producer, for instance, had never worked on a game before joining the project.
Webster praises this youthful energy, stating that the younger talent often outperforms more seasoned colleagues in terms of creativity and efficiency. He argues that nurturing junior staff not only boosts morale but also drives innovation, a lesson that has prompted the studio to adjust its hiring focus. Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship program to further cultivate emerging talent, though he acknowledges that Fuse is still pre‑revenue and must manage costs carefully. He reflects on a period five or six years ago when abundant funding allowed successful developers to spin off their own studios, only to discover that financial backing alone does not guarantee success.
He criticizes the industry’s lingering fascination with the myth of the singular creative visionary, calling it "bullshit" and insisting that games are fundamentally collaborative endeavors. As for Fuse Games’ next steps, the studio remains flexible.
While the launch of Star Wars: Galactic Racer marks a major milestone, the team is already contemplating future projects and potential partnerships. "We’ve got ideas about where we want to go next, but as an independent developer you have to stay adaptable," Webster concludes. "The launch is just the beginning, and we’ll keep looking for opportunities that align with our values and our desire to push the medium forward."