Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He started at the company in 1990 and spent nearly twenty years developing iconic franchises such as Burnout and Need for Speed while working at Criterion, the studio EA acquired in 2004. In early 2023, however, Webster teamed up with fellow Criterion alumni—Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires and Alan McDairmant—to launch a new independent venture, Fuse Games, based in the United Kingdom.
Just three and a half years later the fledgling studio is preparing to ship its debut title, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, under the banner of the newly autonomous publisher Secret Mode. The timing of Galactic Racer’s arrival is noteworthy.
It marks the first Star Wars‑themed racing game since 2002’s Racer Revenge, a gap of twenty‑four years during which the racing genre has generally lost steam in the mainstream market. Recent industry headlines underscore this trend: Amazon walked away from a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for the upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis stating that the project didn’t fit the current market landscape. Meanwhile, Criterion itself has shifted focus away from car games toward 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 racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz.
“Our community’s reactions to our videos and articles suggest we’re not the only ones who think so.” He argues that video‑game genres are cyclical. After a period where shooters dominated, other categories inevitably resurface as the player base expands and even the smallest niches attract larger followings. Webster describes the player’s appetite as a craving for “fun, interesting, compelling new experiences that they haven’t seen before,” and he believes Galactic Racer delivers precisely that. The studio set out to capture the instant‑gratification feel of classic arcade racers while also exploring the creative possibilities that arise when a game is no longer bound 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, Galactic Racer aims to upend long‑standing genre conventions.
Traditional racing games have relied on a car‑collection model for roughly two decades. Webster wants to “rip that up” and borrow mechanics from other genres.
One such mechanic is meaningful consequence. In many modern racers, a rewind feature eliminates the penalty for crashing, but Galactic Racer re‑introduces stakes: each crash pushes the player closer to a reset, though some meta‑progression carries over, granting a more powerful start on subsequent attempts. This risk‑reward loop is inspired by roguelike titles such as Hades, Returnal and Slay the Spire, which are built around infinite replayability—a natural fit for a racing game where players constantly chase faster times.
The consequence system is designed to make each mistake feel weighty. “If you crash too many times you’re sent back to the start, but you keep some progression,” Webster says.
“When you’re on your last crash and the system is critical, you literally feel the tension and start weighing the risk of pushing harder.” This design philosophy represents a deliberate move away from the hand‑holding that has become commonplace in AAA releases. Webster is also mindful of the crowded release calendar. Galactic Racer is slated for October 6, positioning it between the highly anticipated GTA 6 launch on November 19 and other major September releases such as Control Resonant and Silent Hill: Townfall. While some industry observers warn that September and October are “busy” windows, Webster recalls earlier eras when October was considered “murderers’ row” and argues that a confident, realistic outlook is essential.
“Good games will find a way,” he says, echoing a mantra that has guided him through multiple waves of industry layoffs. Speaking on the broader market, Webster notes a prevailing aversion to risk.
He believes this conservatism creates openings for studios willing to take calculated bets. “If you’re not willing to make bold choices, you limit your opportunities,” he observes. Yet he admits that securing funding for an independent studio in 2023 was far from easy. After 32 years at EA, he found himself navigating a new reality where investors questioned the viability of a small, self‑funded team.
Fuse Games’ solution was to keep the core team deliberately small—around 75 people—and augment capabilities through external development partners. Rather than following the traditional “grow‑shrink‑grow‑shrink” cycle, the studio treats outsourcing and co‑development as complementary tools. Simple asset creation is handled transactionally, while deeper collaboration involves external studios joining daily stand‑ups, Slack channels and even the codebase, effectively becoming extensions of the Fuse team.
The United Kingdom, Webster points out, offers a fertile environment for such partnerships. The UK’s mature development ecosystem now includes companies eager to work on varied projects, keeping talent fresh and motivated.
This collaborative model, he argues, allows a studio to deliver a AAA‑scale experience—both in scope and visual fidelity—on a sustainable budget. The speed of Galactic Racer’s development underscores the effectiveness of this approach.
Fuse was founded in January 2023; three and a half years later the team has built a studio, assembled a diverse workforce, and created a game using Unreal Engine 5—a tool none of them had mastered at the outset. Webster describes this rapid progress as an achievement made possible by disciplined planning, continuous adaptation, and a steadfast commitment to core values.
A notable aspect of Fuse’s roster is the blend of veteran Criterion staff with a wave of younger developers, some of whom have never worked in games before. “We are thrilled with the young talent we’ve attracted,” Webster says.
“They are often smarter and more effective than I was at that age.” He observes that senior developers sometimes prefer to work alongside equally experienced colleagues, limiting mentorship opportunities. By contrast, nurturing junior talent not only accelerates innovation but also motivates senior staff through the shared excitement of growth. Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship program to further cultivate emerging talent, though he cautions that the studio remains pre‑revenue and must balance ambition with financial reality.
He reflects on a period five or six years ago when the industry was flush with capital, noting that many successful games spawned spin‑off studios that later struggled because the funding was misallocated to individual “superstar” creators rather than strong, collaborative teams. “The fixation on a singular creative visionary is nonsense,” he asserts. “Games are made by collaborations of individuals.” As for Fuse’s future beyond Galactic Racer, Webster admits the roadmap is still forming.
The launch will be just the beginning, and the studio remains open to exploring new opportunities that align with its flexible, adaptable ethos. In a market dominated by blockbuster releases, Fuse Games aims to prove that a lean core, bolstered by trusted partners and a fresh perspective on genre design, can still carve out a meaningful space for innovative, player‑focused experiences.