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 contributing to the Burnout and Need for Speed franchises while they were under the umbrella of Criterion, which EA acquired in 2004.
In early 2023, however, Webster, along with fellow Criterion alumni Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires and Alan McDairmant, decided to strike out on their own and launch the independent UK studio Fuse Games. Three and a half years later the fledgling studio is poised to release its debut title, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, a partnership with the newly independent publisher 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 lost much of its mainstream steam. Amazon recently 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.
Meanwhile Criterion, once a racing powerhouse, has shifted its focus to the Battlefield franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced there is still a hungry audience for a Star Wars racing experience.
“We clearly think there’s an audience for a Star Wars racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “Our community, the people who watch our videos and read our articles, suggests we’re not alone in that belief.” He argues that video‑game genres are cyclical.
“Shooters dominated for a while, but that’s not the only cycle. As more people play games, even the tiniest niches can find a larger fan base.” According to Webster, players are craving "fun, interesting, compelling new experiences that they haven’t seen before," and he believes Galactic Racer delivers exactly that. The studio’s vision is to craft something fresh, blending classic arcade thrills with imaginative, physics‑defying track design. “We wanted to capture the instant gratification of an arcade racer while also asking what’s possible when you’re not limited by real‑world tyres and tarmac,” he explains.
One example he cites is a course that spirals up the side of an active volcano, turning a race into a roller‑coaster‑like spectacle. Beyond the spectacle, Galactic Racer aims to upend long‑standing conventions of the racing genre.
Traditional racers have relied on a static car‑collection model for the past two decades. Webster wants to tear that apart and borrow mechanics from other genres. The game incorporates consequential decision‑making, especially around crashes. In many modern racers, a rewind feature nullifies the impact of mistakes, but Fuse wants crashes to matter.
“If you crash too many times you’re sent back to the start, but you retain some meta‑progression that puts you in a stronger position,” he says. This risk‑reward loop is inspired by roguelike titles such as Hades, Returnal and Slay the Spire, which are built for infinite replayability. "Racing thrives on replayability," Webster notes, "so combining it with roguelike elements feels like a match made in heaven." The consequence system forces players to weigh each maneuver.
When you’re down to your last crash, the tension rises, and you must decide whether to push the limits or play it safe. This design choice is a deliberate move away from the hand‑holding that has become common in AAA titles, and it reflects Webster’s belief that standing out in a crowded market requires boldness. The launch date—October 6—places the game comfortably before the anticipated release of GTA 6 on November 19, yet after other high‑profile releases such as Control: Resonance and Silent Hill: Townfall on September 24. Webster acknowledges the crowded calendar but reminds us that the industry has always endured busy windows.
"I remember hearing about ‘Murderer’s Row’ in September years ago; October was always packed," he says, emphasizing that confidence tempered with realism is key. Webster’s perspective on risk is shaped by his long tenure in the industry, which includes witnessing a wave of layoffs and the earlier bust of the 2010‑ish studio boom. He observes a current aversion to risk among publishers, which he believes creates openings for studios willing to gamble on innovative concepts. "Great teams make great games, and great games find an audience," he asserts, echoing a mantra that has guided him through multiple industry cycles.
Funding an independent studio in 2023 has not been easy. Webster recounts that many people questioned his decision to leave a secure EA job after 32 years.
The challenge was not just financial but also cultural: moving from a corporate bubble to the uncertain world of indie development required a disciplined approach. "Build a great team, refine a creative vision, create a plan knowing it will change, review, adapt, and stay true to your values," he advises. This philosophy extends to how Fuse structures its workforce. Rather than expanding and contracting a massive internal team, the studio maintains a core of around 75 people and supplements it with external partners for specific needs.
This hybrid model blends outsourcing—transactional asset creation—with co‑development, where external studios become extensions of Fuse’s daily workflow, joining stand‑ups, Slack channels and even the codebase. The UK’s mature game‑development ecosystem makes it an ideal hub for such collaboration. In the past, external studios were often reluctant partners, but today many firms actively seek diverse projects to keep their talent engaged and motivated. Webster believes this environment allows a AAA‑scale game to be produced on a sustainable budget, and the rapid development of Galactic Racer—three and a half years from studio inception to a near‑complete product built on Unreal Engine 5—demonstrates the model’s viability.
Another noteworthy aspect of Fuse’s journey is the infusion of young talent. While the studio’s leadership includes veteran developers from Criterion, many of the team members are fresh faces, some even coming from outside the gaming industry. One producer, for example, had never worked on a game before joining Fuse.
Webster praises this youthful energy, stating that the younger developers often outperform more senior hires in creativity and efficiency. He also critiques the industry’s lingering fascination with the “single creative visionary” myth, calling it "bullshit" and emphasizing that successful games are the result of collaborative effort. Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship program to nurture the next generation of developers, though he acknowledges that Fuse is still pre‑revenue and must balance ambition with financial reality. He points to Criterion’s successful intern pipelines as a model and stresses the importance of entering such initiatives with eyes wide open about the costs involved.
In summary, Matt Webster’s journey from EA stalwart to independent studio founder illustrates a broader shift in the gaming landscape: as the player base expands, even the most niche concepts can find a viable market, provided developers are willing to take calculated risks, embrace new development models, and empower fresh talent. Star Wars: Galactic Racer embodies this philosophy, marrying arcade excitement with roguelike depth, and aims to prove that a well‑crafted, niche racing experience can still capture the imagination of gamers worldwide.