Star Wars Episode I: Racer was a particularly difficult racing game, or at least harder for fans who were more accustomed to the level of challenge of contemporary racing titles like Mario Kart 64 and Diddy Kong Racing. With that in mind, I’m happy to report that Star Wars: Galactic Racer is a much more accessible experience than Episode I: Racer had been, still bringing the high-speed challenge but with more variety in adjustable difficulty levels for some of its major solo modes. As someone who has historically struggled with more realistic racing games, being able to adjust the difficulty for campaign mode was a godsend and for those racing game aficionados, those higher difficulties will definitely test their skills.
Both the campaign and scenario modes also incorporate RPG elements, which makes them a bit more striking than most contemporary racing games. Between races, players can upgrade their vehicles, emphasizing which individual elements they want to enhance. On the flip side, parts that were damaged in a race can hinder a vehicle for the remainder of a campaign or scenario, adding to the risk/reward aspects of the gameplay. These elements are relatively superficial to the experience, but they do help make those longer circuits feel more engaging while highlighting the need to not go recklessly into every race.
There are some drawbacks to the game, though mostly quibbles rather than big glaring flaws in looking at the whole experience. While I thought the crash cam, a camera feature that cuts to an opposing vehicle that you caused to crash unfolding in slow-motion, was cool at first, I ultimately found it distracting and ran the risk of affecting me staying the course when the camera abruptly returned to follow me. Finally, the RPG elements feel like something that could’ve been developed even more than the version that appears in the final game, though the game deserves some praise for introducing these mechanics in the first place.
Between Star Wars: Galactic Racer and the recent squad-based strategy game Star Wars Zero Company, this year has proved that the future of Star Wars may be brightest in the franchise’s current crop of video games rather than movies like The Mandalorian and Grogu. Galactic Racer is a reminder of how malleable the franchise can be in its various multimedia depictions and, more importantly, just how much fun Star Wars is whenever it’s done right. Star Wars: Galactic Racer offers loads of fun in its grand prix tour of that galaxy far, far away and is accessible enough for more casual racing game fans.
Developed by Fuse Games and published by Secret Mode, Star Wars: Galactic Racer releases October 6 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
