Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within Electronic Arts. He started at the company in 1990 and spent almost twenty years developing titles for Criterion, the studio behind Burnout and Need for Speed that 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 the independent UK studio Fuse Games. Just over three years later the fledgling team is on the brink of releasing 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. Amazon recently cancelled a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis remarking that the market simply didn’t have a clear fit for the project.
Meanwhile Criterion itself has shifted away from pure racing to focus on the Battlefield franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced that a demand exists. “We clearly believe there’s an audience for a Star Wars racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “We’re not the only ones who think that, and the response we get from people watching our videos and reading our articles suggests we’re not alone.” He adds that genre popularity tends to be cyclical: “Shooters dominated for a while, but that’s not the only genre that can thrive.
As more people play video games, even the tiniest niche can find a larger audience.” Webster argues that gamers are hungry for fresh, compelling experiences they haven’t seen before, and he feels Galactic Racer delivers exactly that. The team set out to capture the instant‑gratification feel of classic arcade racers while also exploring what’s possible when you’re not limited by 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, the game deliberately subverts long‑standing racing conventions.
Traditionally, racing games revolve around collecting cars—a formula that hasn’t changed in roughly two decades. Webster wants to tear that model apart and borrow mechanics from other genres. One key innovation is the introduction of meaningful consequences for crashes.
In many modern racers a rewind button erases failure, but Fuse wants the penalty to matter. “If you crash too often you’re sent back to the start, though you retain some meta‑progression that puts you in a stronger position,” he says. “When you’re on your last allowed crash, you really feel the risk.” The design draws inspiration from roguelike titles such as Hades, Returnal and Slay the Spire, games built around infinite replayability.
“Racing thrives on replayability, so marrying it with roguelike loops feels like a perfect match,” Webster notes. This approach encourages players to experiment, learn from each run, and improve over time, rather than relying on a single, static progression path. Launching the game on October 6 positions it a month before the highly anticipated GTA 6 release on November 19, but after other major September launches like Control: Resonance and Silent Hill: Townfall.
Webster acknowledges the crowded calendar but points out that the industry has weathered even busier pre‑Christmas schedules before. “People used to call October ‘Murderers’ Row’ because it was so packed. We have a healthy confidence, tempered by a realistic view of how things might turn out,” he says. When the conversation turns to the wave of layoffs sweeping the sector, Webster reflects on his long tenure.
He remembers a similar bout of cuts fifteen years ago and notes a recurring truth: great teams make great games, and great games find their audiences. He observes that risk‑averse attitudes are limiting opportunities, and that studios willing to take calculated bets can thrive. Starting an independent studio in 2023 has not been easy.
Funding proved elusive, and many questioned the wisdom of launching a new venture after a 32‑year stint at EA. Webster’s answer was to lean on core principles: assemble a talented team, hone a clear creative vision, and maintain disciplined planning while staying flexible. “The plan is always wrong, but it’s the best version you have today,” he says. “Review, adapt, and stay true to your values.” Fuse Games operates with a relatively small core of about 75 people, a deliberate choice to avoid the typical grow‑shrink‑grow cycle that plagues many studios.
Instead, they supplement the core with external partners, ranging from transactional outsourcing for asset creation to full co‑development where external studios join daily stand‑ups, Slack channels, and even the codebase. Webster highlights the UK’s mature development ecosystem as a fertile ground for such collaborations, noting that today’s external studios are eager to work on diverse projects rather than merely keeping the lights on. The result, he believes, is a sustainable model for AAA‑scale production on a more manageable budget. The rapid development timeline—starting Fuse in January 2023 and delivering a UE5‑based game three and a half years later—demonstrates that this hybrid approach can work.
"We built a studio, a team, and a game on technology none of us had previously mastered. It feels like an achievement, and we did it in a healthy, sustainable way," Webster says. A notable aspect of Fuse’s culture is the infusion of younger talent alongside seasoned veterans. One of the producers on Galactic Racer had never worked in games before joining the project.
"The young developers are smarter and more effective in many ways than I was at that age," Webster remarks. He argues that focusing solely on senior hires can stifle growth, whereas nurturing fresh talent energizes the whole team. He hopes to formalize an internship program in the future, though he cautions that the studio is still pre‑revenue and must be realistic about the costs involved.
Looking back to the boom years five or six years ago, Webster recalls how successful games often led to funding for spin‑off studios, only for those founders to discover how difficult it truly is to build a sustainable business. He criticizes the industry’s lingering fixation on the “lone visionary” myth, calling it "bullshit" and emphasizing that games are collaborative creations. As for what lies ahead, Fuse Games remains open‑ended.
The launch of Galactic Racer is just the first step, and the studio is already considering next‑phase opportunities. "We have ideas about where we want to go, but as an independent developer you have to stay flexible and adaptable," Webster concludes.