‘Star Wars: Galactic Racer’ Wins Over Critics, Hailed as ‘Best Arcade Racing Game In A Generation’

The first Star Wars racing game in more than two decades is crossing the finish line to near-universal acclaim, with Polygon declaring Star Wars: Galactic Racer the “best arcade racing game in a generation.”

Reviews for the game, developed by Fuse Games and published by Secret Mode, arrived ahead of its Oct. 6 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC. It is the franchise’s first racing title since Star Wars: Racer Revenge in 2002.

Burnout Veterans Take The Wheel

Fuse Games was founded in 2023 by former members of Criterion Games, the British studio behind the Burnout series and several Need for Speed titles. Studio founder Matt Webster, who directed the game, previously worked with Lucasfilm on vehicle combat for Star Wars Battlefront and Star Wars Battlefront II.

That pedigree shows, according to critics. GamesRadar praised the game’s blistering speed as true to the team’s Burnout roots, while GameSpew likened the racing to a cross between WipEout and Burnout and called the game a stunning debut for the roughly 75-person studio.

A Racer Built Like A Roguelike

Rather than a traditional championship structure, Galactic Racer uses a “runs-based” campaign borrowed from the roguelike genre. Set in the lawless Outer Rim after the fall of the Empire, the story follows Shade, an upstart driver in the Galactic League, an underground circuit bankrolled by criminal syndicates. Players pilot landspeeders, speeder bikes and podracers while working toward a showdown with rival Kestar Bool.

The gamble appears to have paid off. Giant Bomb’s reviewer called the structure brilliant and said the game boasts one of their favorite single-player campaigns in any racing game, praising its astounding sense of speed and precise handling. TheSixthAxis described it as a truly modern racer that keeps improving the longer you play.

Kotaku called it one of the best-looking Star Wars games it has seen, and among its favorite entries in the franchise in years. Traxion, which scored the game 8 out of 10, highlighted environmental twists such as water cooling down vehicles while lava and acid overheat them.

A few dents

Praise wasn’t unanimous on every front. Several outlets found the story and characters forgettable, with one reviewer calling Kestar Bool far from a compelling villain and noting that the unlockable vehicles do not feel distinct enough from one another.

Kotaku said the game’s on-foot segments fall flat and wished for more podracing, a sentiment echoed by fans hoping to relive the iconic sequence from 1999’s The Phantom Menace. Other critics lamented the absence of a traditional Grand Prix or custom arcade mode, as well as local split-screen multiplayer.

Still, the consensus is clear. Across outlets, reviewers called Galactic Racer the best racing game in Star Wars history, and several argued it is essential for genre fans regardless of their interest in the franchise.

Star Wars: Galactic Racer launches Oct. 6.