As far as debuts go, Fuse Games, a Guildford-based studio made up of a gamut of developers from Electronic Arts and Criterion Games, could have done way worse than start with a Star Wars game. It’s not just any ol’ Star Wars game, but one set in a genre that Lucasfilm Games barely touched on since Star Wars Episode I: Racer in 1999.

Earlier this week, Polygon spoke with Craig Derrick, executive producer at Lucasfilm Games, and Matt Webster, founder of Fuse Games, about Fuse's first venture into a galaxy far, far away and what they want gamers to take away from their experience with the arcade racer. For the team, it was about creating something that would revolutionize the racing genre without coasting on Star Wars nostalgia.

Galactic Racer has plenty of surprises, but Fuse Games taking the wheel for the first new Star Wars racing game in 24 years wasn't one of them. Criterion Games brought the critically acclaimed Burnout franchise to life, featuring high speeds and aggressive mechanics that often made racing feel more like a battle than a race; the perfect vibe for a setting where podracing and speeder racing can often mean life or death.

Yet for all the obvious nostalgic longing for a game like Episode I, both Webster and Derrick were clear that the game — while a foundational influence — should only serve as a starting point.

"Our goal wasn't to just make players remember something that they played a long time ago," Derrick explained.

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