Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He started at EA in 1990 and spent nearly twenty years contributing to the Burnout and Need for Speed franchises through Criterion, the studio 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 on the verge of releasing its debut title, *Star Wars: Galactic Racer*, under the banner of the newly independent publisher Secret Mode.
*Galactic Racer* arrives roughly 24 years after the last Star Wars‑themed racing game, 2002’s *Racer Revenge*. In the intervening years the racing genre has struggled for mainstream attention.
Amazon recently walked away from a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving title *Clutch*, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis remarking that the market didn’t seem to have room for another racer. Criterion itself has pivoted away from pure racing projects to focus on the *Battlefield* franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced that a demand exists. “We clearly see an audience for a Star Wars racing game,” he told GamesIndustry.biz.
“Our community feedback – video views, article comments – suggests we’re not the only ones who think so.” Webster argues that video‑game genres are inherently cyclical. While shooters dominated the market for several years, the pendulum swings back, and as the overall player base expands, even the most niche concepts can find a sizable following. He believes gamers are hungry for “fun, interesting, compelling new experiences they haven’t seen before,” and he feels *Galactic Racer* delivers exactly that. The team’s vision is to craft something fresh, blending arcade‑style instant gratification with imaginative, physics‑defying tracks that go beyond ordinary asphalt.
“We wanted to explore what’s possible when you’re not limited by tyres and tarmac,” Webster explains. “One of our circuits climbs the side of an active volcano – it feels like a roller‑coaster at times.” Beyond the visual spectacle, *Galactic Racer* seeks to upend long‑standing racing conventions. Most racing games have relied on a static car‑collection model for two decades, a formula Webster describes as “ready‑made and stale.” Instead, his studio is borrowing mechanics from other genres, particularly roguelikes such as *Hades*, *Returnal*, and *Slay the Spire*. The game emphasizes consequential decision‑making, especially around crashes.
In many modern racers, a rewind button erases the impact of mistakes, but Fuse wants crashes to matter. “If you crash too often you’re sent back to the start, but you retain some meta‑progression that puts you in a stronger position,” he says. “When you’re on your last allowed crash, the risk feels real, and you have to weigh every maneuver.” This design choice re‑introduces tension and reward, encouraging players to master each run rather than relying on safety nets.
Replayability is another cornerstone. Racing, by nature, thrives on repeated attempts, and by marrying that with roguelike loops, Fuse hopes to create a “match made in heaven.” The game’s structure rewards perseverance: each failure teaches the player something new, and the meta‑progression system ensures that subsequent attempts feel both familiar and fresh.
This approach also differentiates *Galactic Racer* from the hand‑holding typical of many AAA titles, offering a more skill‑centric experience. Timing the launch is also a strategic decision. *Galactic Racer* is slated for October 6, positioning it well before the highly anticipated *GTA 6* release on November 19, yet after other major September launches such as *Control: Resonance* and *Silent Hill: Townfall*. Webster acknowledges the crowded calendar but points out that the industry has long dealt with busy windows.
“People used to call September ‘murderer’s row,’ and October has always been packed,” he notes. “We have confidence in our product, tempered with a realistic view of how the market may respond.” The conversation inevitably turns to the broader industry climate, especially the wave of layoffs that has shaken studios worldwide. Webster, who has witnessed a similar downsizing period fifteen years ago, believes that great teams produce great games, and great games find audiences.
He observes a current aversion to risk, which he sees as an opening for developers willing to take calculated bets. “When you avoid risk, you limit opportunity,” he says. “Those who are bold enough to push boundaries can capture the space left behind.” Funding, however, remains a hurdle for new independent studios.
Webster recalls the skepticism he faced when announcing Fuse in 2023: “People said, ‘You’re brave starting an indie studio now.’” After three decades at EA, he was stepping into uncharted territory. His guiding principles—building a strong team, honing a clear creative vision, and maintaining disciplined planning—proved essential.
He stresses that plans are always imperfect, but they provide a framework that can be iterated upon. Fuse operates with a relatively lean core of about 75 developers, a deliberate choice to avoid the boom‑and‑bust staffing cycles common in larger studios. Instead of expanding and contracting the internal team, Fuse leverages external partners for additional capacity. This hybrid model ranges from transactional outsourcing for asset creation to full co‑development, where external studios attend daily stand‑ups, share Slack channels, and contribute directly to the codebase.
Webster highlights the UK’s mature development ecosystem as a key advantage, noting that today’s external studios are eager to collaborate across projects rather than merely seeking survival work. According to Webster, this model demonstrates that a AAA‑scale game—by scope, visual fidelity, and ambition—can be produced on a sustainable budget when a small, permanent core is complemented by trusted partners.
The rapid development timeline of *Galactic Racer* underscores the viability of this approach: Fuse was founded in January 2023, and within three and a half years the team built the studio, assembled talent, and delivered a UE5‑powered title despite initially lacking deep engine expertise. Talent composition is another point of pride. While the studio includes several Criterion veterans, a substantial portion of the workforce consists of younger developers, some of whom have never worked in games before.
“Our young talent is often smarter and more effective than I was at that age,” Webster admits. He believes nurturing junior staff creates a more dynamic and motivated environment than relying solely on seasoned veterans who may prefer minimal interaction. The success of Criterion’s historic internship programs inspires Webster to eventually launch a similar initiative at Fuse, though he acknowledges the financial constraints of being pre‑revenue.
Reflecting on the industry’s past excesses, Webster recalls a period five or six years ago when abundant funding allowed successful developers to spin off their own studios, only to discover the challenges of independent operation. He criticizes the lingering myth of the “single creative visionary” as “bullshit,” emphasizing that games are collaborative endeavors.
“Unless you’re a solo dev, games are made by teams of individuals working together,” he asserts. Looking ahead, Fuse’s roadmap remains fluid.
While the launch of *Star Wars: Galactic Racer* is just the beginning, Webster hints at exploring new opportunities and ideas, stressing the need for flexibility as an independent studio. He concludes with a hopeful note: “Good games find a way. We’re hoping ours does too.”