Now this is Pod Racing!
There has been a lot that has been said about the prequel Star Wars movies over the years. As a huge fan I can admit that The Phantom Meance was pretty mid, not because of the actors or anything but solely due to the writing. But, aside from the badass that is Darth Maul it also gave us one super awesome thing; podracing. Back when it was released in 1999 there was even a Star Wars Pod Racer game that fans remember quite fondly, fast forward to 2026 and finally we are getting a new entry but this time its much more than just pod racing.
In Star Wars Galactic Racer players join a racing league that has been set up during peace time as this takes place after ROTJ and years before The Force Awakens. The racing league is full of crime syndicates like the Hutts among others who can sponsor racers and give them upgrades and perks. Truly the cast of characters that have been created for this game are all memorable with the instantly punchable Kestar Bool presented as your rival. Even Sebulba makes an appearance, only here he is far removed from the victor he was depicted as in Phantom Menace.
MSRP: $59.99
Platforms: XBOX (reviewed), PlayStation, PC
Price I’d Pay: $59.99
Galactic Racer is an arcade racing game brought to us by Fuse Games, a studio who is made up of ex-Criterion developers and it shows. Takedowns are in this game, smashing racers into walls presents players with a camera angle of the spectacle before giving them control back of their racer. It’s all so glorious to behold and its as fun as taking down foes in Burnout Paradise. I will say the AI here isn’t as good at steering though as more than once I came out of those cutscenes barreling toward a wall at 450/mph.
As nice as it is using the takedowns I was wrong in my impression thinking they were as important as they are in say Burnout 3. Focusing on positioning and straight up racing is more important to success than trying to takedown all the other racers. In addition to a normal afterburner that gives players a boost they are also equipped with a ‘Ramjet’ which will further boost the speed but can overheat so players will have to watch the heat gauge to disengage it before they explode. There are ways to cool the system down though, catching air in a big jump, driving over water. There are even ice planets where you will need to drive through heat vents to melt the ice buildup and planets with rivers of acid that players will need to avoid lest their vehicle melts.
Players are able to combat this by creating builds for their chosen vehicle. Galactic Racer has multiple choices for vehicles from a regular landspeeder to a speeder bike; players are free to customize the look and feel of them as long as they have the credits to do so. As players progress in the 3-act campaign, they will unlock credits that can be spent at their monkey friend’s shop. There are abilities like an ion shot that can disable a racer and a host of others that players can choose from, some that increase speed or make your vehicle more durable.
When it comes to narrative, there isn’t one to really speak of here. It’s presented as a roguelite, which honestly is genius for a racing game. Repeatedly trying to get to the top of the league was fun until it wasn’t. For one very quickly do the voice lines that the side characters use gets repeated. In between races/planets players can walk around and speak to other racers as well purchase upgrades and it’s here where you will hear those lines. The finale didn’t end up amounting to much but the flashback races that explore Sebulba’s life since his lose to Anakin was the highlight narratively speaking.
Star Wars Galactic Racer is a fun and exciting game addition to the Star Wars universe. Its roguelite nature lends itself quite well to the drama of chasing being the best in the Galactic league. The sense of speed on display here is insane and it was so much fun that I kept coming back for multiplayer and more. Even though it didn’t have a story that was as engaging as some other SW games, I can assure that Star Wars Galactic Racer offers enough fun that you won’t even really miss it.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.