Developers behind the upcoming Star Wars Galactic Racer have offered a spirited defense of the prequel trilogy's most notorious podracer, Sebulba, arguing that his actions were not cheating but rather shrewd "gamesmanship."
During an interview at Gamescom, Fuse Games CEO Matt Webster addressed the characterization of Sebulba as a cheater. "I think he would probably take issue with 'cheating,'" Webster stated. Narrative director Nat Daw chimed in, suggesting, "So long as you don't get caught, it's gamesmanship." Webster agreed, adding, "That's right, it's gamesmanship, yeah. Yeah, he's doing what he can to win."
The defense comes for a character primarily remembered for cutting the brakes on Anakin Skywalker's podracer during their iconic race on Tatooine. The developers' perspective frames Sebulba's actions as necessary tactics, especially given Anakin's eventual victory through his own quick thinking and the narrative convenience of plot armor.
Webster also elaborated on the multiplayer mechanics of Galactic Racer, highlighting a unique betting system that encourages strategic play. Players can place bets on their own finishing positions before each event, with rewards scaling based on the accuracy of their predictions. This system aims to keep all players engaged throughout the race series, allowing them to build up their vehicles even if they aren't consistently finishing in first place.
"Speeder tours are 12 players, podracing tours are eight, but the the tours follow the same structure, which is six events," Webster explained. "The first five events are a build chase, so your finishing position determined what rewards you get and what parts are available to you. But importantly, you bet on your finishing position, so before every event, you're like, 'Where am I going to finish here?' You know, okay, maybe if I'm confident, I'm going to go all in, I'm going to say I'm going to come I'm going to place in the top three. If I achieve that, I get an epic reward. If I don't get there, I don't get as good a reward."
He continued, "Or you might say, 'Top nine, I'll hedge my bets a little bit here.' If you achieve that, you get a you get a decent part drop. So, every time, there's a decent opportunity for you to progress, and that solves a great challenge that we have in the past where if you didn't come first in a in a series of races online, you're kind of like, 'Well, I'm done. I'll just try my bet somewhere else.' Now, everybody has a chance--and I'm serious, where we've seen this--everyone has a chance to claw that victory because the first first five events are about building the best vehicle you can for the showdown event. The very last event is one where you put it all on the line, and there you're betting on who's going to win."
Fuse Games aims to innovate within the racing genre with Star Wars Galactic Racer, which is slated for release on October 6 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.