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 while they were under the umbrella of Criterion, which 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 an independent studio in the United Kingdom called Fuse Games.
Just over three years later, that fledgling studio is poised to ship its debut title, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, under the publishing banner of the newly independent 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 slipped out of the mainstream spotlight.
Amazon recently cancelled a publishing agreement with Maverick Games for its upcoming driving title Clutch, with Amazon Games head Jeff Gattis explaining that the market simply didn’t appear to have a strong fit for that kind of product. Meanwhile, Criterion itself has shifted focus away from pure racing and is now working on the Battlefield franchise. Despite these signals, Webster remains convinced that a market exists for a Star Wars racing experience. “We clearly see an audience for a Star Wars‑based racer,” he told GamesIndustry.biz.
“We’re not the only ones thinking that, and the reaction we get from people watching our videos and reading our articles suggests we’re not alone.” He points out that genres tend to be cyclical. After a period dominated by shooters, other types of games inevitably return to relevance, especially as the overall video‑game player base continues to grow.
In a larger player pool, even the most niche interests can find a sizable following. Webster 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 team set out to capture the instant gratification of classic arcade racing while also exploring what’s possible when you’re not limited by realistic tires and asphalt.
"We have tracks that climb the side of an active volcano," he explains, describing routes that feel more like roller‑coasters than traditional circuits. Beyond the high‑octane thrills, the game seeks to upend long‑standing conventions of the racing genre. For the past two decades, most racing titles have been built around a car‑collection model, where players unlock or purchase new vehicles to progress.
Webster wants to tear that formula apart and borrow mechanics from other genres. One key innovation is the introduction of meaningful consequences for crashing.
In many modern racers, a rewind feature nullifies the impact of mistakes, but Galactic Racer reinstates risk: repeated crashes send you back to the start, though you retain a portion of meta‑progress that puts you in a slightly stronger position. This creates a tension between aggression and caution that mirrors the high‑stakes decision‑making found in roguelike games such as Hades, Returnal, and Slay the Spire. The roguelike influence extends to the game’s overall design philosophy. Those titles are celebrated for infinite replayability, a quality that dovetails naturally with racing’s competitive replay loop.
By blending procedural elements, persistent upgrades, and a penalty‑based crash system, Galactic Racer aims to keep players engaged long after they finish the initial campaign. Webster acknowledges that this approach is a bold departure from the hand‑holding that has become common in AAA releases, but he also recognizes the necessity of standing out in a crowded market.
The game is slated for an October 6 launch, strategically placed a month before the highly anticipated GTA 6 release on November 19, yet after other major September titles like Control: Resonance and Silent Hill: Townfall. While some industry observers warned that September is a busy window, Webster recalls earlier eras when October was considered the “murderer’s row” of releases, suggesting that a packed calendar is not a new challenge. Confidence, he says, is tempered with realism.
“Good games find a way,” he notes, echoing a sentiment that has guided him through multiple industry downturns, including the wave of layoffs that has swept the sector in recent years. He observes that risk‑averse behavior is currently limiting opportunities, and that studios willing to take calculated bets can carve out space for themselves. Launching an independent studio in 2023 has not been without obstacles. Securing funding proved difficult, with many investors questioning the wisdom of starting a new studio in a volatile climate.
Webster reflects on his 32‑year tenure at EA as a “bubble” and emphasizes the core principles he has carried forward: assembling a talented team, refining a clear creative vision, and maintaining disciplined planning while staying adaptable. Fuse Games operates with a relatively lean core of around 75 staff members—small for a title of AAA ambition.
This size is intentional; the studio avoids the typical “grow‑shrink‑grow‑shrink” cycle that many large developers experience. Instead, Fuse relies heavily on external partners to fill skill gaps, treating outsourcing as a transactional asset pipeline and co‑development as an extension of the internal team. External collaborators attend daily stand‑ups, participate in Slack discussions, and contribute directly to the codebase, creating a seamless hybrid model.
The United Kingdom, with its mature game‑development ecosystem, provides an ideal environment for such collaborations. In the past, studios often viewed external help as a reluctant necessity, but today many companies actively seek partnerships that align with their values and keep talent motivated. Webster believes this blended approach allows a studio to deliver AAA‑level scope, scale, and visual fidelity on a more sustainable budget.
The speed of Galactic Racer’s development underscores the viability of this model. Fuse was founded in January 2023, and within three and a half years the team built a studio, assembled a workforce, and delivered a game built on Unreal Engine 5—an engine that none of them had deep experience with at the outset. Webster describes this achievement as both impressive and sustainable. Another noteworthy aspect of Fuse’s strategy is its emphasis on youthful talent.
While the studio includes seasoned veterans from Criterion, many of its developers are newcomers, with at least one producer who had never worked in games before joining the project. "The young talent we have is incredibly smart and effective—often more so than I was at their age," Webster says. He argues that focusing solely on senior hires can stifle growth, whereas nurturing younger staff energizes the whole team.
He hopes to formalize an internship program in the future, though he admits the studio is still pre‑revenue and must be realistic about the costs involved. Reflecting on the era a few years ago when the industry was flush with capital, Webster recalls how many successful developers received funding to start their own studios, only to discover the challenges were greater than anticipated.
He criticizes the lingering myth of the “single creative visionary” as a harmful fantasy. "Games are made by collaborations of individuals," he asserts, dismissing the notion that a lone genius can carry a project alone. Looking ahead, Fuse Games remains flexible. While the launch of Galactic Racer is just the beginning, the studio is already contemplating future opportunities and potential directions.
Webster emphasizes that independent developers must stay adaptable in a constantly shifting landscape, ready to pivot when new chances arise. In summary, Matt Webster’s journey—from a long‑standing EA veteran to the founder of a lean, partnership‑driven studio—illustrates a broader shift in the gaming industry. By targeting a niche that has grown larger thanks to an expanding player base, reimagining genre conventions with roguelike‑inspired mechanics, and leveraging a hybrid development model that balances a small core team with trusted external collaborators, Fuse Games aims to prove that ambitious, high‑quality experiences can be built sustainably.
Star Wars: Galactic Racer stands as a test case for this philosophy, and its upcoming release will reveal whether the market indeed welcomes a fresh, arcade‑style racing adventure set in a galaxy far, far away.