Matt Webster’s career began at Electronic Arts back in 1990, and for nearly twenty years he helped shape the Burnout and Need for Speed franchises while working at Criterion, the studio EA acquired in 2004. In early 2023, however, Webster teamed up with former Criterion colleagues Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires and Alan McDairmant to launch their own independent venture, Fuse Games, based in the United Kingdom. Three and a half years later the fledgling studio is on the brink of releasing its debut title, *Star Wars: Galactic Racer*, under the banner of the newly independent publisher Secret Mode. The game arrives roughly 24 years after the last Star Wars‑themed racing title, *Racer Revenge* (2002), and it does so at a time when the racing genre has struggled to maintain mainstream appeal.
Recent industry news underscores this trend: Amazon walked away from a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for the upcoming title *Clutch*, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis stating that the market simply didn’t have room for another driving game. Meanwhile, Criterion, once a powerhouse of arcade‑style racers, has shifted its focus to the *Battlefield* franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced that a demand exists for a Star Wars racing experience.
“We clearly see an audience for a Star Wars‑based racer,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “Our community feedback, video views and article reads suggest we’re not alone in that belief.” He points out that gaming trends are cyclical. While shooters dominated the market for a period, other genres inevitably resurface as the player base expands. “As more people play video games, even the tiniest niches can find a larger audience,” he added.
Webster believes gamers are hungry for fresh, compelling experiences that feel new. *Galactic Racer* aims to deliver exactly that by marrying classic arcade thrills with inventive design choices that push the genre’s boundaries.
The team wanted to capture the instant gratification of arcade racing while also exploring what’s possible when you’re not constrained by realistic tyres and tarmac. “We have tracks that climb the side of an active volcano,” Webster explained.
“It feels like a roller‑coaster at times.” Beyond the high‑octane visuals, the game challenges long‑standing conventions. Most racing titles rely on a static car‑collection system that has changed little in two decades.
Fuse decided to “rip that up” and borrow mechanics from other genres. One key innovation is the introduction of meaningful consequences for crashes. In many modern racers, a rewind button eliminates risk, but *Galactic Racer* re‑introduces stakes: crashing too often sends you back to the start, though you retain a portion of meta‑progress that makes subsequent attempts slightly easier. This risk‑reward loop forces players to weigh each maneuver carefully, especially when they’re on their final allowable crash.
The design is heavily inspired by roguelike principles found in games like *Hades*, *Returnal* and *Slay the Spire*. Those titles are built around infinite replayability, a trait that dovetails naturally with racing, which thrives on repeated runs. By embedding roguelike progression into a racing framework, Fuse hopes to create a “match made in heaven” that encourages players to return again and again. Webster acknowledges that launching a new IP in a crowded calendar is risky, especially with heavyweight releases such as *GTA VI* slated for November 19.
*Galactic Racer* is set for an October 6 launch, giving it a modest window before the blockbuster hits. He notes that September and October have historically been busy months, recalling the “murderer’s row” of titles that traditionally flooded the market. Nevertheless, Fuse approaches the launch with a “healthy sense of confidence” tempered by realistic expectations.
“Good games find a way,” he says, echoing an industry maxim that has guided him through past cycles of layoffs and market shifts. Speaking on the broader industry climate, Webster observes a growing aversion to risk among larger publishers, which he believes creates opportunities for studios willing to make calculated bets. However, he also admits that securing funding for an independent studio in 2023 was challenging. After 32 years at EA, he found himself navigating a new landscape where investors questioned the viability of a small, self‑funded team.
Fuse’s solution was to keep the core team deliberately small—about 75 people—and rely on external partners for additional capacity. Rather than the typical “grow‑shrink‑grow” model, they employ a hybrid approach that blends transactional outsourcing for asset creation with deeper co‑development relationships where external studios join daily stand‑ups, Slack channels and even the codebase. Webster highlights the UK’s mature development ecosystem as a key advantage, noting that today’s external studios are eager to collaborate on diverse projects rather than merely seeking survival work.
This flexible model, he argues, allows a studio to deliver AAA‑scale scope, visual fidelity and scope on a sustainable budget. The rapid development timeline of *Galactic Racer*—from Fuse’s founding in January 2023 to a launch in late 2026—demonstrates the efficacy of this approach. “We built a studio, a team, and a game on Unreal Engine 5, a tool none of us had mastered at the start,” Webster says. “Doing it in a healthy, sustainable way feels like a real achievement.” A notable aspect of Fuse’s culture is its emphasis on young talent.
While the studio includes several veterans from Criterion, many of its developers are newcomers, with at least one producer who had never worked in games before joining the project. Webster praises this fresh perspective, claiming the younger staff have often outperformed more senior hires in both creativity and efficiency.
He also critiques the industry’s lingering myth of the “single creative visionary,” calling it “bullshit” and insisting that great games are the product of collaborative effort. Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship program to nurture the next generation of developers, though he admits the studio is still pre‑revenue and must prioritize financial stability first. 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 the reality of building a sustainable business is far tougher than anticipated.
In sum, *Star Wars: Galactic Racer* represents Fuse Games’ ambition to revive arcade racing with a fresh, risk‑aware design philosophy, leveraging a lean core team, strategic external partnerships, and a youthful, motivated workforce. Whether the market will respond positively remains to be seen, but Webster’s confidence in the game’s unique blend of Star Wars lore, innovative mechanics and replay‑focused design suggests that even niche experiences can find a sizable audience in today’s ever‑expanding gaming landscape.