Matt Webster’s career once seemed destined to stay within the walls of Electronic Arts. He started at the company in 1990 and spent almost twenty years contributing to the Burnout and Need for Speed franchises through Criterion, the studio EA acquired in 2004.
In early 2023, however, Webster joined forces with former Criterion colleagues Steve Uphill, Pete Lake, Andrei Shires, and Alan McDairmant to launch the independent UK studio Fuse Games. Three and a half years later the fledgling team is poised to release 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, and it does so at a time when the racing genre has lost some of its mainstream shine. Amazon recently cancelled a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis noting that the market simply didn’t seem to fit the project. Meanwhile, Criterion itself has shifted focus away from racing toward the Battlefield series. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced there is still a hungry audience for a Star Wars‑based racer.
“We clearly see a demand for a Star Wars racing experience,” he told GamesIndustry.biz. “Our community feedback, video views and article reads suggest we’re not the only ones who feel that way.” He argues that video‑game genres tend to be cyclical.
After a period dominated by shooters, other styles inevitably rise again. As more people worldwide pick up games, even the most niche interests can gather a sizable following. Webster believes players are craving "fun, interesting, compelling new experiences they haven’t seen before," and he sees Galactic Racer as delivering exactly that fresh twist.
Fuse’s design philosophy embraces the instant‑gratification feel of classic arcade racers while also asking, "What can we do once we’re no longer bound by realistic tyres and tarmac?" The answer, he says, includes tracks that climb the side of an active volcano and courses that feel like roller‑coasters. Beyond the high‑octane thrills, the game aims to upend long‑standing racing conventions. Traditionally, racers have relied on a car‑collection model that has remained largely unchanged for two decades.
Webster wants to tear that structure up and borrow mechanics from other genres. One of those borrowed ideas is the emphasis on meaningful consequences. In many modern racers, a rewind button can erase mistakes, diluting the impact of a crash. Galactic Racer re‑introduces stakes: crashing too often forces the player back to the start, though some meta‑progression carries over, placing the racer in a stronger position for the next attempt.
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 marrying it with roguelike principles feels like a match made in heaven." The game’s consequence system is deliberately unforgiving.
When a player exhausts their allotted crashes, they are sent to the beginning, but they retain certain upgrades or knowledge, making each subsequent run feel both familiar and fresh. This design choice pushes players to weigh risk versus reward, especially in the final, critical moments of a race.
Webster acknowledges that launching a new IP in a crowded calendar is risky, especially with heavyweight titles like GTA 6 slated for November 19. Galactic Racer is set for an October 6 release, positioning it between big releases such as Control: Resonance and Silent Hill: Townfall (both September 24). He points out that the industry has weathered even busier pre‑Christmas windows in the past, recalling the “Murderers’ Row” of October releases from earlier years. Fuse approaches the market with a “healthy sense of confidence” tempered by realistic expectations.
“Good games find a way,” he says, echoing a mantra that has guided him through multiple waves of industry layoffs. Speaking on the broader climate, Webster observes a growing aversion to risk among publishers, which in turn creates openings for studios willing to take calculated bets. Yet he admits that securing funding for an independent studio in 2023 was far from easy. After three decades at EA, he found himself stepping out of a comfortable bubble into a landscape where investors questioned the viability of a small, self‑funded team.
Fuse’s solution was to keep the core team deliberately lean—around 75 people—while leveraging external partners for additional capacity. Rather than the typical “grow‑shrink‑grow‑shrink” cycle that plagues many studios, Fuse relies on trusted co‑development relationships. Outsourced work handles transactional asset creation, whereas deeper collaborations integrate external studios directly into daily stand‑ups, Slack channels, and the codebase.
Webster highlights the UK’s mature development ecosystem as a fertile ground for such partnerships, noting that today’s studios are eager to collaborate rather than reluctantly assist. This hybrid model, he believes, proves that a AAA‑scale game can be built sustainably on a modest budget when a stable core team is supplemented by aligned external talent.
The rapid development timeline of Galactic Racer underscores this point: Fuse was founded in January 2023, and within three and a half years they have assembled a studio, recruited a team, and produced a UE5‑powered game despite initially knowing little about the engine. Another notable aspect of Fuse’s journey is its infusion of youthful energy. Alongside veteran Criterion alumni, the studio has hired many younger developers, even bringing on a producer with no prior game‑industry experience. Webster praises this fresh perspective, claiming the younger cohort has often outperformed more seasoned hires in creativity and efficiency.
He argues that nurturing junior talent benefits both the newcomers and the senior staff, fostering a collaborative environment that outweighs the traditional preference for senior‑only teams. Looking ahead, Webster hopes to formalize an internship program to further cultivate emerging talent, though he admits the studio is still pre‑revenue. He reflects on a time when the industry was flush with capital and many successful developers were encouraged to spin off their own studios—often with mixed results.
The era of the “lone visionary” has, in his view, been overrated. "Games are made by collaborations of individuals," he asserts, dismissing the myth of a single creative genius. As for Fuse’s next steps, the future remains fluid.
While the launch of Galactic Racer marks a significant milestone, the studio is already considering new opportunities and directions. Webster emphasizes the need for flexibility and adaptability in today’s independent development landscape, signaling that Fuse will continue to experiment, iterate, and perhaps surprise the market once more.