Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He started at EA in 1990 and spent almost twenty years developing titles for Criterion, the studio behind Burnout and Need for Speed, which EA acquired in 2004. In early 2023, however, Webster, together with former Criterion colleagues Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires and Alan McDairmant, decided to leave the corporate giant and launch an independent studio in the United Kingdom called Fuse Games.
Just over three years later the fledgling team is poised to ship 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 time when the racing genre has generally lost some of its mainstream momentum. Amazon recently walked away from a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for the upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis remarking that the market didn’t appear to have a clear fit for that project. Meanwhile, Criterion itself has shifted focus from pure racing experiences to the Battlefield franchise.
Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced there is still a viable audience for a Star Wars‑based racing game. “We clearly think there’s a market for a Star Wars racer,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “Our community, the people who watch our videos and read our articles, seem to agree that we’re not alone in wanting one.” Webster points out that video‑game genres tend to be cyclical.
After a period dominated by shooters, other types inevitably resurface. As the overall player base expands, even highly specific niches can find a larger following.
He believes gamers are hungry for "fun, interesting, compelling new experiences that they haven’t seen before," and he feels Galactic Racer delivers exactly that. The studio’s goal was to capture the instant‑gratification feel of classic arcade racers while also asking, "What can we do when we’re no longer bound by tyres and tarmac?" The answer, according to Webster, includes tracks that climb the side of an active volcano and courses that feel more like roller‑coasters than conventional circuits. Beyond the high‑octane thrills, Galactic Racer seeks to upend long‑standing conventions of the racing genre.
Traditionally, racing games have relied on a car‑collection model that has changed little in the past two decades. Webster wants 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 feature essentially erases the penalty for a mistake. Fuse Games wants to restore stakes: crashing too often sends the player back to the start, though some meta‑progression carries over, putting the racer in a slightly stronger position.
This risk‑reward loop forces players to weigh each maneuver carefully, especially when they’re on their final allowed crash. The design philosophy also draws heavily from roguelike titles such as Hades, Returnal and Slay the Spire—games built around infinite replayability.
Racing, by nature, thrives on repeated runs, so merging those two concepts creates a "match made in heaven," according to Webster. The idea is to give each race a fresh procedural twist, encouraging players to experiment, learn, and improve over countless attempts. Launching the game on October 6 places it in a crowded autumn window, sandwiched between blockbuster releases like Control: Resonance (September 24) and Silent Hill: Townfall (also September 24), and a few weeks ahead of the highly anticipated GTA 6 slated for November 19. Webster acknowledges the competition but notes that busy pre‑Christmas schedules are nothing new.
"Someone once told me September looked busy, but I remember the old ‘Murderers’ Row’ era where October was packed with releases," he recalled. Fuse Games approaches the market with a "healthy sense of confidence" tempered by realism. "I was always told good games will find a way, so we’re hoping our game does too," he said.
When discussing the recent wave of industry layoffs, Webster reflects on his long tenure and the earlier downsizing that occurred about fifteen years ago. He observes that great teams produce great games, and great games attract audiences.
However, he also notes a growing aversion to risk across the industry, which creates openings for developers willing to take calculated bets. "If you’re not willing to risk, you limit opportunity," he warned. Starting an independent studio in 2023 has not been without challenges.
Funding proved difficult to secure; many people questioned the wisdom of launching a new studio in a turbulent market. Webster, who spent 32 years at EA, found the transition jarring but relied on core principles he’d learned: assemble a talented team, refine a clear creative vision, and maintain disciplined planning—while accepting that any plan is inevitably imperfect and must be iterated upon.
He emphasizes that motivated, engaged talent is the engine of great games, and it’s the leadership’s job to nurture that enthusiasm. Fuse Games remains relatively small for a title of AAA ambition, numbering roughly 75 staff members.
This size is intentional. Rather than expanding and contracting the core team—a pattern Webster sees often in larger studios—Fuse relies heavily on external development partners to fill gaps. He describes a spectrum of collaboration: from transactional outsourcing for asset creation to deep co‑development where external studios attend daily stand‑ups, join Slack channels, and contribute directly to the codebase.
The UK, with its mature game‑development ecosystem, serves as an ideal hub for such partnerships. In the past, external studios were reluctant to collaborate, preferring to protect their own projects. Today, many companies hire developers who are eager to work across multiple teams, keeping the talent pool fresh and motivated.
Webster believes this hybrid model—small permanent core plus trusted external partners—offers a sustainable path to delivering AAA‑scale experiences on a reasonable budget. He cites the rapid development of Galactic Racer as proof: Fuse launched in January 2023, and three and a half years later the team had built a studio, assembled a team, learned Unreal Engine 5 from scratch, and produced a full‑fledged game.
"It feels like an achievement, and we did it in a healthy, sustainable way," he said. The studio’s composition also reflects a deliberate blend of veteran insight and youthful energy. While several Criterion veterans are present, many younger developers have been hired, including a producer who had never previously worked in games. "The young talent we’ve got is smarter and more effective in many ways than I was at that age," Webster remarked.
He observed that seasoned developers often prefer senior colleagues who need little guidance, which can stifle growth. In contrast, nurturing younger staff creates a two‑way motivational loop. Webster hopes to formalize this approach with an intern program, though he cautions that the studio is still pre‑revenue and must be realistic about the costs involved. Looking back to a period five or six years ago when the industry was flush with capital, Webster recalls how many successful teams received funding to spin off their own studios, only to discover the reality was far tougher than expected.
He criticizes the lingering myth of the "single creative visionary" as "bullshit," insisting that games are inherently collaborative endeavors. "Unless you’re a solo developer, games are made by collaborations of individuals," he emphasized.
As for Fuse Games’ future beyond Galactic Racer, Webster admits plans are still fluid. The launch is just the beginning, and the studio remains open to discussing new opportunities. He stresses that independent developers today must stay flexible and adaptable to survive and thrive in an ever‑changing market.