In 1977, George Lucas changed the history of cinema forever. cinema and of popular culture with the release of Star Wars, giving rise to an unprecedented global phenomenon. Over the decades, this iconic saga has transcended the big screen to solidify itself among generations of fans around the world.
Over time, Star Wars video games have built an equally impressive legacy, from the early arcade titles to more recent, narrative-driven offerings. However, one genre that stands out as particularly beloved within this franchise is racing. From the legendary Star Wars Episode I: Racer on the Nintendo 64, through Racer Revenge, and now, with Fuse Games and the support of Lucasfilm Games And following the distribution of Secret Mode, Star Wars: Galactic Racer arrives with the ambitious task of revitalizing this legacy on modern platforms and new generations.
But… what is Star Wars Galactic Racer about?
Star Wars: Galactic Racer is categorized by its own developer as a "Runs-Based" title, marking a conceptual distance so as not to be strictly categorized under the label of a Roguelike or Roguelite.
In this game, the player is fully immersed in speeder racing through various game modes. Its campaign mode is chronologically set in the Star Wars saga timeline between Episode VI: Return of the Jedi and Episode VII: The Force Awakens, after the Battle of Jakku. In this storyline, the player takes on the role of Shade, a professional pilot who decides to enter the Galactic League with a single goal in mind: to dethrone the reigning champion, Kestar Bool.
Personally, I believe that while the campaign features a wide variety of interesting characters (both completely new faces and appearances of others already seen in various Star Wars media that provide good doses of fan service), the title does not manage to take full advantage of them all, unlike other recent offerings of the franchise in video games.
In this section, the biggest problem lies with Shade, the protagonist of the story, who is an uninteresting character driven by rather superficial motivations that fail to fully connect with the player.
Initially, the player can customize Shade in a rather limited way before starting the campaign. They can modify their outfit, helmet, phenotype (selecting whether they are male or female), and even their voice pitch. Without a doubt, this section represents the weakest and most austere part of all the customization options the game offers.
A roguelike that feels like a roguelike but isn't a roguelike.
As I mentioned at the beginning, Fuse Games prefers to define Star Wars: Galactic Racer as a "run-based" game, playing on the ambiguity of the term "runs" within the gaming vocabulary. The campaign focuses on the player's participation within the Galactic League to overthrow Kestar Bool; however, it's not a linear journey. It's an experience based on learning from mistakes, practicing, and progressively improving over time, just like any pilot in real life.
The campaign is divided into acts, and in each one, the player must compete through various events on a single planet. The challenges range from traditional races and elimination events to time trials, pit stops to acquire upgrades from Habi (Shade's Ardennian engineer companion), and random encounters with other competitors who may offer advantages or threaten to damage your speeder before the race, causing it to explode at takeoff before you can even attempt to advance to the next stage.
To compete in the League, a player needs League Tokens, relying entirely on them to remain active within the circuit. If a player runs out of tokens after being repeatedly defeated, hitting a wall, or being defeated by another competitor a certain number of times, they will be eliminated and must restart the act from scratch.
Create your own style as a pilot in Star Wars Galactic Racer
Fortunately, before starting a new tour, previous progress translates into unlockables. The player will obtain various racer styles, parts, abilities, and favors that will enhance the next run according to each user's preferences, forcing them to make constant decisions as they build their own archetype or "build" as a driver.
Below, I simplify each of the main elements that allow the player to grow on the courts:
- Runner StylesThere are 14 styles to unlock and try; these have unique traits and abilities that directly modify the gameplay on the track.
- ImprovementsOnce applied, these upgrades increase one of the vehicle's six base stats and contribute to its overall speed. These base stats are: cornering, afterburner, stamina, ramming boost, battery, and, depending on the vehicle, drift (for the landspeeder), kinetic burst (for the speeder bike), or side-lever (for the skim speeder).
- PartiesThe installed parts provide passive effects that modify the vehicle's behavior based on its condition and the race environment. They have varying levels of rarity; the rarer the part, the more powerful the effect. At the start, up to four parts can be installed on each speeder, and these must work in synergy with your driving style, planetary conditions, and status effects.
- SkillsThese can be activated on the track to gain offensive or defensive advantages. There is a wide variety to discover and upgrade, allowing you to equip up to 5 on your vehicle.
In addition, each "run" rewards the player with Tuning Points, a currency that can be used in the garage to unlock new vehicles and permanently improve their base stats to a certain extent.
Use the speeder that best suits your play style
In Star Wars: Galactic Racer, the player has 3 different classes of speeders, each with a special characteristic that distinguishes it from the others:
- The LandspeederIt's the most well-rounded of the three vehicles. It boasts a robust design while maintaining respectable speed and high stability in the face of environmental damage or collisions with rivals. Its specialty is the ability to execute controlled drifts, making it easy to take tight corners without losing momentum.
- The Speeder BikeA small, extremely agile vehicle with brutal acceleration. It allows for superior maneuverability on tight corners and sharp turns; however, it is fragile and prone to damage, and its long-term performance is unsustainable if the top positions are not dominated from the start.
- The Skim SpeederIt functions as a hybrid between the two previous ones. Its unique quality is the ability to lean widely and sideways, allowing the player to glide smoothly and gracefully when entering and exiting sharp turns.
Star Wars Galactic Racer features two acceleration mechanics. The first is the afterburner, the conventional turbo found in most titles of the genre. The second is the Ramjet, a secondary propulsion system that grants a massive speed boost but carries the risk of overheating.
Excessive use of the Ramjet will turn the blue status bar red. Upon entering the "Red Zone," the vehicle overheats and risks exploding. However, certain skills and playstyles grant additional advantages while in this critical state, making it a high-risk, high-reward system.
Knowing how to alternate between the afterburner and the ramjet to sustain high speeds, as well as understanding the exact moment to activate each one, is the ultimate key to climbing to the top of the Galactic League.
They didn't forget the classic Pods
While the main garage focuses on the 3 types of speeders mentioned, it's gratifying to note that Galactic Racer also pays tribute to the legendary Podracers, the iconic vehicles originally introduced in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace.
Podracers are extremely fast machines but fragile upon impact. Although they cannot be freely selected as a primary vehicle in the base garage, the game allows you to pilot them at key moments in the campaign and in specific multiplayer modes.
Seven planets and many clues you'll need to know
Since its launch, Star Wars: Galactic Racer has featured a total of seven iconic planets seen in various media of the saga, each with distinct geographical and climatic characteristics that change the gameplay on the track. The list of locations includes:
- jakku
- Lantaana
- I'm Prime
- Sentinel One
- Derven Acos
- Crait
- Tatooine
At this point, it's fair to acknowledge that Fuse Games was incredibly clever in their level design. While on paper it might seem like there's only one track per planet, the reality is that each location boasts a massive and complex circuit. In each race, the system selects a specific section of that vast track, opening or closing shortcuts, or making the player race in reverse depending on the type of race. This creates the constant illusion of competing on a completely new track.
This design decision is a resounding success, as it makes the experience feel fresh and varied every time you enter a circuit despite not having a large number of planets available at launch.
Let's delve into multiplayer mode
During my early access as press, some sessions were organized so that other colleagues and some Star Wars content creators could get a first look at the multiplayer mode due to the limited number of people playing simultaneously prior to its official release.
Available for up to 12 players per room (with crossplay enabled between console and PC players), the game features four game modes, divided between Tours (Multiplayer Tour with Speeders or Pod Racing Tour for up to 8 players) with upgrades, skills and parts, while in Quick Races (Speeder Quick Races or Pod Racing Quick Races for up to 8 players) you race directly without any kind of upgrade.
Here, the player can unlock playable characters as they level up, each equipped with their own unique racing style and traits that provide predetermined buffs. And it doesn't matter what type of speeder you use, as you can select any of the three main types regardless of the character you choose.
Beware of the Snowball effect
Unfortunately, many of us noticed during gameplay that Tour mode has a problem: a noticeable snowball effect that only benefits the player who stays in the lead during the first few tracks. Because players can bet on their finishing position, whoever crosses the finish line in first place receives more credits, allowing them to purchase additional upgrades. Therefore, if this continues on subsequent tracks, their advantage over the other competitors becomes extremely significant, making it nearly impossible to overtake them.
Another negative aspect is that, at the time of writing this article, the multiplayer does not have the possibility of playing private matches, nor a ranked system for the most "tryhard" players, nor visual telemetry elements to know how much ping you have.
It is important to mention that, because it was a somewhat limited experience that did not always manage to fill all the rooms, it is very likely that the overall experience will be substantially different from that reflected in this review.
Other game modes you can enjoy
Beyond the main campaign, the game offers a section of individual challenges where players can tackle stages of varying difficulty featuring different rival racers from the story, each one tailored to a specific racing style and personality. As you progress through the stages, you'll unlock more for the other characters. Completing these challenges grants rewards that can be used to upgrade and customize your speeders for the main campaign.
There's also arcade mode, which focuses primarily on completing certain tracks within a time limit through various modes such as Test Flight, Pod Races, precision tracks, and driving in challenging terrain conditions like acid, heat, and ice, among others. Unlike multiplayer mode, here players can see a leaderboard with their friends who also own the game.
While these additional game modes certainly offer a bit more challenging content and hours of gameplay that are undoubtedly enjoyable, I feel that in the long run they don't represent anything substantial.
On the other hand, I find it impressive that the player does not have the possibility of doing Tours or Quick Races with bots outside of the campaign mode, only in offline mode like other titles of the genre.
Speeder customization in Star Wars Galactic Racer
The dream of any Star Wars enthusiast is to be able to design their own ship or vehicle, and in Galactic Racer, Fuse Games fulfills part of that fantasy thanks to a very complete customization system in the mechanical and aesthetic aspects of the ships.
Using Kit Points (currency earned progressively across all game modes), players can unlock a wide variety of models, paint schemes, and patterns for all three speeder categories. A particularly positive aspect is that many of these visual components are interchangeable, allowing for unique combinations (mash-ups) between completely different model styles.
Meanwhile, in multiplayer mode, the community can unlock additional patterns, recolors, banners, and badges for their runner profile by completing daily missions or by leveling up while playing with specific characters.
Overall, the customization options for speeders are quite solid and satisfying. However, the playable character customization and the variety of multiplayer-exclusive cosmetic rewards feel somewhat limited.
Unfortunately, the aforementioned customization is limited to the three main types of speeders. Traditional Pods cannot be customized.
Let's talk about its graphics and performance
Visually, Fuse Games' work is impeccable. The sense of speed is superbly achieved thanks to well-applied blur effects, dust particles, snow or sand depending on the planet, and vehicle models with a high level of technical detail. Through photo mode, the player can further appreciate the graphical quality of Star Wars: Galactic Racer, despite it not being a hyper-realistic game.
What would improve is the way some characters express themselves during the campaign mode, since sometimes the characters speak while the model keeps its mouth completely closed.
In terms of performance, the game maintains a very stable FPS rate in most of its modes (even though it's time to upgrade some components in my PC), something vital for a racing title where a millisecond of delay can mean crashing into a wall.
Despite the positive aspects, I cannot deny that on very rare and extremely specific occasions I experienced some crashes in the game, especially when leaving a queue in multiplayer mode.
A very well-executed sound design
The audio also deserves special recognition. The engine sounds, the distinctive whistling of the wind as it passes within millimeters of the rocks, and the roar of the Ramjet as it enters the Red Zone are masterfully executed. Furthermore, the soundtrack perfectly complements each race, blending classic orchestral chords from the series with more modern and upbeat electronic rhythms, heightening the tension and adrenaline with every lap.
Conclusion
Star Wars: Galactic Racer manages to position itself as a remarkably solid, addictive, and adrenaline-fueled title that does a completely honest job of paying homage to the franchise's racing games. With a run-based structure that rewards learning and trial and error, the game excels at presenting a build-based racing experience with clever modular track design and technical aspects that convey a sense of speed with flawless performance. Adding to this is a brilliant sound design, making every roar of the speeders an irresistible urge for another Star Wars marathon.
However, the game isn't without its flaws, preventing it from achieving absolute perfection. The protagonist's underdeveloped characterization and customization throughout the campaign, the initial feeling of imbalance in multiplayer mode, and some much-needed omissions like bot matches outside the campaign or the inability to customize the iconic Pods, are some of the disappointments this experience leaves me with.
Despite this, Fuse Games, Lucasfilm Games, and Secret Mode deliver a highly enjoyable work that not only revitalizes speeder racing for the current generation of consoles and players, but also establishes itself as an unmissable return to the tracks for any enthusiast of the racing genre and, above all, any lover of everything that Star Wars and its galaxy far, far away represent.
This review was conducted on PC thanks to a code provided by Secret Mode. Star Wars: Galactic Racer arrives on October 6th for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
