Quick TakeArticle at a glance
- Star Wars: Galactic Racer launched to an 88 Metascore on PlayStation 5 ahead of its October 6, 2026 release, the best review-aggregate score for a Star Wars game since Knights of the Old Republic hit 94 in 2003.
- Reviews went live this week ahead of Galactic Racer’s Tuesday, October 6, 2026 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
- Galactic Racer puts players in the seat of Shade, a racer working through a branching campaign of events with mechanic Hibi to build out landspeeders, skim speeders, speeder bikes and podracers piece by piece.
Star Wars: Galactic Racer launched to an 88 Metascore on PlayStation 5 ahead of its October 6, 2026 release, the best review-aggregate score for a Star Wars game since Knights of the Old Republic hit 94 in 2003. Developer Fuse Games and publisher Secret Mode built a podracing-centered arcade racer that critics are calling one of the best uses of the license in over two decades.
Reviews went live this week ahead of Galactic Racer’s Tuesday, October 6, 2026 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC. Early aggregate scores on Metacritic put it at 88 on PS5, 86 on Xbox Series X/S and 84 on PC, and OpenCritic logged 97% of its October 2026 launch-week reviews as recommended.
A Franchise Finally Gets Podracing Right Again
Galactic Racer puts players in the seat of Shade, a racer working through a branching campaign of events with mechanic Hibi to build out landspeeders, skim speeders, speeder bikes and podracers piece by piece. It’s a structure closer to a career-mode racing sim than past Star Wars racing games, and reviewers say that’s exactly what makes it work: the upgrade loop gives every race a reason to exist beyond crossing the finish line first.
Giant Bomb’s Jeff Grubb gave it a perfect 5/5, writing that “Fuse built a campaign that keeps giving me reasons to master the tracks, then made the racing feel good enough that I wanted to.” TheGamer’s Josh Coulson, who scored it 4.5/5, called it “another example of a studio taking some well-educated risks with the Star Wars IP to create something truly special,” pointing to the runs-based racing structure and a multiplayer mode built to outlast the campaign.
How It Stacks Up Against Other Star Wars Games
| Game | Metacritic score |
|---|---|
| Star Wars: Galactic Racer (2026) | 88 (PS5) |
| Knights of the Old Republic (2003) | 94 |
| Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (2023) | 85 |
| Star Wars Battlefront II (2005) | 83 |
| Star Wars Battlefront (2004) | 80 |
| Star Wars Battlefront (2015) | 73 |
| Star Wars Battlefront II (2017) | 68 |
That 88 makes Galactic Racer the fifth-best-reviewed Star Wars game of all time, trailing only Knights of the Old Republic, Dark Forces II, Rogue Squadron II and Jedi Outcast — and it beats every Battlefront title the franchise has released since 2004.
What’s Actually in the Game
Beyond the campaign, Galactic Racer ships with an arcade quick-play mode and a scenario mode built around time trials and eliminator races, where the last-place racer gets knocked out at set intervals until one competitor is left. Races span both familiar Star Wars locations and new planets built specifically for the game, giving the roster of vehicles room to actually feel different from track to track rather than reskinning the same course.
Where It Lands Against the Films
For context on just how well this landed: Galactic Racer’s 88 beats the Metacritic score for The Empire Strikes Back (82) and Return of the Jedi (58), and trails only A New Hope (90) among the entire film saga. That’s an unusual benchmark for a licensed game to clear, and it’s a big part of why early reaction has been as loud as it has.
For more on this year’s biggest game launches, see our picks for the highest-grossing superhero movies of all time and our ongoing Marvel Rivals Season 10 coverage.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Star Wars: Galactic Racer’s Metacritic score?
Star Wars: Galactic Racer launched to an 88 on PlayStation 5, 86 on Xbox Series X/S and 84 on PC, with OpenCritic showing 97% of critics recommending it.
When does Star Wars: Galactic Racer release?
The game releases Tuesday, October 6, 2026, on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Who developed Star Wars: Galactic Racer?
Fuse Games developed the game, and Secret Mode published it.
Is Galactic Racer the best-reviewed Star Wars game ever?
It’s the best-reviewed Star Wars game since Knights of the Old Republic scored 94 in 2003, and the fifth-best-reviewed Star Wars game overall, behind KOTOR, Dark Forces II, Rogue Squadron II and Jedi Outcast.
What do you do in Star Wars: Galactic Racer?
Players control Shade through a branching campaign, building and upgrading landspeeders, speeder bikes and podracers with mechanic Hibi, alongside arcade and scenario modes including time trials and last-place-elimination races.
