The first Star Wars racing game in a long time is finally out, and it is not a nostalgia lap. Star Wars: Galactic Racer launched on October 6, 2026 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC, and it pairs a very fast arcade racer with a roguelite campaign where crashing too often sends you back to the start of a tour. Critics have been loud about it, with a Metacritic score of 88 from 65 reviews and an OpenCritic Top Critic Average of 87 on the morning of October 7. It also shared a launch day with Gears of War: E-Day, so a lot of people are deciding which one to play this week.
This guide pulls everything you need in one place: platforms and unlock time, editions and prices, PC specs and Steam Deck, how the campaign and tours work, the four vehicle classes, multiplayer limits, what critics loved and what they flagged, known launch issues, and beginner tips taken from the official material and from the reviews. Official facts come from StarWars.com's launch post, the official game site, Secret Mode's edition announcement, the Steam store page and the developer's pinned Steam FAQ. Review opinions are quoted and credited to each outlet.
Release Date, Platforms and Unlock Time
Galactic Racer is out on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store. Those are the only platforms Secret Mode has announced.
How To Video Game's launch-time breakdown, which checked the Steam, PlayStation and Microsoft store data, reported a single worldwide unlock at 9:00 UTC on October 6. That is 4:00 AM CT, 5:00 AM ET, 2:00 AM PT and 10:00 AM in the UK. The Deluxe and Collector's editions did not unlock early. Secret Mode never listed early access as part of either edition.
The game is developed by Fuse Games and published by Secret Mode, in collaboration with Lucasfilm Games. Fuse co-founder and CEO Matt Webster said in the launch post that "three and a half years ago, Fuse Games was a handful of people with a big idea scrawled on a whiteboard." Polygon and GamesRadar+ both note that the studio was founded by former Criterion Games developers, the team behind Burnout and several Need for Speed games, and you can feel that history in the takedowns and boost system.
Age ratings, per the official FAQ: ESRB E10+, PEGI 12, USK 6, CERO B and ACB PG.
Editions and Prices
Secret Mode's April announcement set the official prices. Every pre-order also came with a bonus livery (its color depended on your platform) and a Player Banner background for multiplayer.
A few things that are easy to miss:
- Physical Standard and Deluxe copies are console only. On PC, the only physical option is the Collector's Edition, and that comes with a Steam code.
- The Deluxe Upgrade is sold as DLC for people who bought Standard and want the extra vehicles later. The launch materials do not list a price for it, so check your store.
- Retail prices move. Some outlets reported a lower Collector's Edition price. The $159.99 figure above is Secret Mode's official SRP, and retailers can and do discount.
- The Deluxe vehicles are the Kor Sarun line. Secret Mode's press release calls the skim speeder the "Rak S" and the official site spells it "Rac S". It is the same car either way.
PC Specs, Steam Deck and Controls
The Steam page lists these requirements:
The SSD requirement is not a suggestion. The game streams very fast tracks and the store page marks the SSD as required on both tiers. How To Video Game reported download sizes of roughly 36 GB on PS5, 37 GB on Xbox and just under 39 GB on PC with the day-one patch, but those numbers are reported rather than official.
On Steam Deck, the developer FAQ says "a consistent 30fps performance is achievable on Steam Deck with the optimal settings." PC Gamer's review listed Steam Deck status as unknown, so treat the developer's 30fps statement as the official word for now.
Other platform details from the FAQ:
- Keyboard and mouse are supported, and controller rumble works on every platform.
- No wheel support, no HOTAS or HOSAS support and no VR. Full DualSense haptics and resistance are listed as not supported, although GamesRadar+ mentions a bit of trigger resistance on the engine-start check.
- Offline play works for the campaign, Arcade and Scenarios. On PC you need to be online the first time you launch, for authentication.
- Trophies and achievements are supported on PlayStation, Xbox and Steam.
- Xbox online play needs a Game Pass Essential, Premium or Ultimate subscription, according to How To Video Game's read of the Microsoft Store listing.
What Kind of Game Is Galactic Racer?
The official description calls it a "runs-based, high-stakes reinvention of racing." In plain terms, it is an arcade racer built around boost and takedowns, wrapped in a roguelite structure.
The setting is the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. With the Empire gone and the New Republic rebuilding, an unsanctioned racing circuit called the Galactic League has sprung up in the Outer Rim, bankrolled by syndicates and gamblers. You play Shade, a helmeted, customizable pilot with a personal grudge against the League's champion, Kestar Bool, and his family. Your mechanic is Hibi, an Ardennian who runs a workshop in each planet's paddock. Sebulba, older and bearded and just as rude as he was in The Phantom Menace, turns up as a reluctant mentor. The tagline sums up the tone: "No Force. No prophecy. Just skill, strategy, and the will to rise."
The planets
StarWars.com's launch post lists seven planets: Jakku, Sentinel I, Lantaana, Derven Acos, Ando Prime, Tatooine and, revealed in the launch trailer, Crait from The Last Jedi. Each planet has several circuits built from sections of a larger course, and Game Informer notes there are reverse versions too. GamesRadar+ describes the campaign's later rotation as running through six planets, and both it and IGN wish there were more.
Planet conditions matter. GamesRadar+ explains that Ando Prime's cold keeps your engine cool but can freeze your steering if you stay out too long, and Polygon mentions acid rivers on some courses that can knock out your electrics if you are not shielded.
The four vehicle classes
The first three race against each other. Podracers have their own events and their own multiplayer playlists. Polygon adds that at the start of a run you also pick from 14 racing styles, each with its own traits and starting abilities, plus game-modifying Favors.
How the Campaign Works
This is the part that makes Galactic Racer different from every other licensed racer. The campaign is split into three acts, and each act is a tour you have to survive.
- Pick your route. You move along a branching map of events, like FTL or Slay the Spire, as PC Gamer puts it. Some routes have more standard races, some have more high-risk events, and some lead to shops or random encounters.
- Move planet every few events. GamesRadar+ says the League moves to a new planet every four events, and you walk the paddock in third person between stops to talk to rivals, visit Hibi and buy upgrades.
- Do not get Wrecked. Crash three times and you are Wrecked, per GamesRadar+. StarWars.com puts it simply: "Crash too many times and you're out of the tour."
- Protect your League Token. In Eliminator races you must reach the top three before time runs out or you lose your token and the tour ends. Eliminators also pay the best: high credits, two Upgrade points and a high-quality Part, according to GamesRadar+.
- Expect surprises. Mystery Encounters replace a race with a paddock event. GamesRadar+ describes everything from discounted faulty parts to a rival's "gift" that blew up two races later.
- Keep some progress. When a tour fails, you restart the act, but StarWars.com confirms "certain perks and unlocks earned in previous attempts are carried over to the next run."
Builds: afterburner, ramjet and abilities
Builds are where the depth lives. You have two kinds of boost. The Afterburner is the safer boost on a cooldown. The Ramjet is faster and can overheat and blow you up if you push it too far. Polygon calls a build focused on Ramjet cooling "really powerful", and GamesRadar+ swears by the Vent and Surge abilities for dumping heat and going even faster.
Abilities cost energy from your battery, which you can upgrade. PC Gamer lists examples like Ion Bolt (scrambles a rival's steering), Vent (drops your heat to zero) and Concussion Mine, and Game Informer mentions Autopilot, lock-on ion blasts, corrosion vents and shockwaves. Status effects such as Cooled, Burning, Overcharged, Corroded and Shielded change how heat and damage work. Cruising over water can cool you, and racing over lava does the opposite.
Before each race there is also a pre-race check: a quick button sequence you have to enter within a few seconds to prime the afterburner and power up abilities. GamesRadar+ points out that one of the Autopilot inputs is the Konami code.
Other Modes
- Scenarios are short tours where you play as one of the other racers with a set vehicle and build. Polygon describes them as five-race tours and Game Informer as six-race campaigns. Either way, both say they are a good way to learn playstyles you would not pick yourself.
- Arcade is mostly time trials and challenge events, and it is where many players first try podracing. Arcade leaderboards are friends-only, not public, per the FAQ.
- Multiplayer Tour condenses a campaign run into a short online tour with a build phase and a final championship race. Polygon and Game Informer both highlight the betting system, where you can predict your own finishing position and the overall winner for extra rewards. The official site says online tours end with a showdown on Derven Acos.
- Quick Race, Quick Podrace and Podracer Tour fill out the online side.
Multiplayer: Player Counts, Parties and Crossplay
The developer FAQ is very clear on the numbers:
- Up to 12 players in speeder races (Quick Race and Multiplayer Tour) and up to 8 in podracer races.
- Crossplay between PC and consoles is on by default and can be turned off.
- No split-screen.
- Parties are capped at 3 players right now. The FAQ says Fuse is "planning to increase this to 6 players in a future update" aimed at "the first few weeks of launch."
- Empty slots fill with AI racers, and matchmaking may drop you into a tour that has already started, in Spectator Mode, with "adequate resources" so you are not behind when the next race starts.
Review Roundup: What Critics Are Saying
Scores are as listed on each outlet's review or on OpenCritic's page on October 7. GamesRadar+'s verdict box did not show a numeric score in the version we read, so we have left it unscored here.
What reviewers loved
The speed and the feel. Polygon's Oli Welsh calls it "the most original and exciting racing game in a generation" and says "speed never sounded so good as it does in Star Wars." GamesRadar+'s Will Sawyer describes it as "the most satisfying and immersive racing game I've played."
The run-based structure. GamesRadar+ lists "excellent run-based format sets a new standard" as a top reason to buy. PC Gamer's Jody Macgregor says it shakes up racing more successfully than the open world of Burnout Paradise did. Game Informer's Wesley LeBlanc calls it "an excellent racing roguelite that's enthralling, challenging, and hard to put down."
The Star Wars flavor. Kestar Bool is a villain reviewers love to hate. PC Gamer says Sebulba "ends up stealing the show", and both PC Gamer and Polygon praise the sound design, down to a score that only kicks in on the final lap, just like in The Phantom Menace.
Multiplayer as a surprise. Polygon calls Multiplayer Tour "a brilliant, fresh take on online racing," with the caveat that Fuse has to balance it in the wild.
What reviewers flagged
It is hard, and it does not teach you much. Polygon says the game "has little in the way of tutorials" and that crashing out of a run several events in "feels brutal." Game Informer agrees "the initial hump is tall."
Tracks can be hard to read. PC Gamer blames many of its crashes on struggling to tell white ice from white snow or brown rocks from brown sand. Game Informer points out there is no minimap. Polygon notes the tracks "can be hard to read at speed."
Not enough planets, and a repetitive Act 3. GamesRadar+ lists a "disappointingly small" planet roster, an "annoying" Act 3 difficulty spike and an "abrupt campaign ending." IGN's verdict says it "gets a little repetitive" for the same reason. PC Gamer felt the story's ending "felt flat."
Forced podracer events. Game Informer found podracers "simply are too fast and dangerous," and being forced into them in campaign events that can end a run was "the wrong kind of left turn."
Autopilot. PC Gamer calls Autopilot "an odd combination of overpowered and flawed" after it steered into walls and over mines. The developer's own known issues list confirms that Autopilot can "very rarely" guide your vehicle onto an inaccessible route.
What players are saying
On Steam, the game sat at Mostly Positive (78% of 1,192 reviews) on the morning of October 7. Tech Times' launch roundup quotes Steam players praising the feel, with one naming the lack of key and control remapping as their only real complaint. TheGamer reports that fans were vocal about the party-size cap before launch, which is why Fuse has already promised the 6-player update.
Known Issues at Launch
Secret Mode pinned an official known issues post on Steam on launch day. The ones most likely to affect you:
- NVIDIA RTX 50 series cards can crash when using Frame Generation and DLSS.
- Switching apps while in Fullscreen can make the monitor blink and the system become very unresponsive.
- Interface Scale resets to 50% after a restart on Steam and Steam Deck.
- On Steam Deck, the EOS overlay does not display, which can make the game look frozen. The developer's fix is to press B to cancel and return to the game.
- MSAA upscale does not work as expected.
- Multiplayer: rare kicks to the menu at the start of a Quick Podrace, spectator camera glitches, and parties not fully reconnecting after a disconnect.
- Save file: the game does not always warn you if your save is corrupted.
Beginner Tips for Your First Tours
These come from the official descriptions and from what the reviewers found, not from secret data.
- Start in a landspeeder. Officially it is the toughest class and the easiest to drift. Game Informer had the most success with it. Bikes and skim speeders are worth exploring once you know the tracks.
- Play a couple of Scenarios early. Polygon recommends them to "fully understand some of the playstyle and build options," and they are a low-risk way to try other vehicles.
- Learn one planet at a time. Several reviewers say the tracks got easier as they learned them. Arcade time trials are a good way to practice a circuit without risking a run.
- Pick a build direction and stick to it. Ramjet cooling, shields and offense all work. In our experience with run-based games, a build with a bit of everything rarely does any of it well.
- Respect Eliminators. They have the best rewards, but losing your League Token ends the tour on the spot. Take them when your build is strong, not when you have just been Wrecked twice.
- Do not lean on Autopilot near tunnels and jumps. It is powerful, but PC Gamer saw it hit walls, and the developer has admitted to a routing bug.
- Nail the pre-race check. It primes your afterburner and abilities, so a clean check is a free head start.
- Watch your heat. Water and high speed help cool you. Lava and flame attacks heat you up. Overheat the Ramjet and you will explode.
- Expect to lose runs. It is a roguelite. Some perks and unlocks carry over, and every failed tour teaches you a track or a rival's habits.
Is Galactic Racer Worth Buying?
If you like arcade racers that ask a lot of you, this is an easy recommendation. TheGamer notes its review scores are the best for a Star Wars game since Knights of the Old Republic, and the run-based structure gives it real legs. If you mainly want a relaxed Star Wars nostalgia trip, or a game to play with five friends in one private lobby this weekend, you may want to wait for the party-size update and for the early patches. The Standard Edition has the full game. The Deluxe Edition is three extra vehicles, three Arcade events and cosmetics, which is nice to have, not essential.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did Star Wars: Galactic Racer come out?
It launched on Tuesday October 6, 2026. Store listings showed a single worldwide unlock at 9:00 UTC, which is 4:00 AM Central, 5:00 AM Eastern and 2:00 AM Pacific.
What platforms is Star Wars: Galactic Racer on?
It is on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store. Physical Standard and Deluxe copies are console only. The physical Collector's Edition is also sold for PC with a Steam code.
How much does Star Wars: Galactic Racer cost?
The official prices are $59.99 for Standard, $79.99 for Deluxe and $159.99 for the physical Collector's Edition. The Deluxe Edition adds three Kor Sarun vehicles, three Arcade events, cosmetics and a digital art book. There is no early access in any edition.
Is Star Wars: Galactic Racer a roguelike?
It is a runs-based racer with roguelite elements. The campaign is split into three acts. If you crash too many times or fail an Eliminator, your tour ends and you restart the act, but some perks and unlocks carry over between attempts.
Does Galactic Racer have crossplay and split-screen?
It has crossplay between PC and consoles, on by default and optional. There is no split-screen. Online races hold up to 12 players in speeders and 8 in podracers.
How many friends can I party with in Galactic Racer?
Parties are capped at 3 players at launch. The developer says an update raising this to 6 players is planned within the first few weeks after launch. Private or custom lobbies are not available.
Can you play Galactic Racer offline?
Yes. The campaign, Arcade events and Scenarios work offline. You need to be online for multiplayer, leaderboards and updates, and PC players must be online the first time they launch the game.
What are the PC requirements for Galactic Racer?
The minimum is an Intel Core i5-8400 or Ryzen 5 2600, 12 GB of RAM and an RTX 2060, Arc A580 or RX 5600 XT. The recommended tier is an i7-10700 or Ryzen 7 3700X, 16 GB of RAM and an RTX 3060 Ti, Arc B580 or RX 6700 XT. Both need 50 GB on an SSD.
Does Galactic Racer run on Steam Deck?
The developer says a consistent 30fps is achievable on Steam Deck with the optimal settings. There is a known issue where the EOS overlay makes the game look frozen. Press B to get back into the game.
What did critics think of Star Wars: Galactic Racer?
Very positive overall. It had a Metacritic score of 88 from 65 critics and an OpenCritic Top Critic Average of 87 on October 7. Polygon called it the best arcade racer in a generation. The most common complaints are a steep learning curve, hard-to-read tracks, a small planet roster and a flat campaign ending.
Final Take
Galactic Racer is the rare licensed game that critics talk about for its design first and its license second. The racing is fast enough to scare you, the run structure makes every tour feel like it matters, and the Star Wars dressing is done with real care. The rough edges are real too: a punishing early curve, tracks that blend together at 600 km/h, a party cap that blocks bigger friend groups, and a launch issue list worth reading if you play on an RTX 50 card or a Steam Deck.
If you are starting this week, pick a landspeeder, run a Scenario or two, and accept that your first few tours will end in a fireball. That is how the game is meant to work.
