Star Wars: Galactic Racers' unveiled a playable demo at the Summer Game Fest 2026 Play Days. The session lasted about an hour, offering a look at both the campaign and various racing modes.

Star Wars: Galactic Racers is a high-octane racing game born in the lawless Outer Rim. Set in the aftermath of the Empire's fall and the galaxy's reconstruction, the game centers on the newly formed Galactic League. Players can pilot a variety of vehicles, including landspeeders, speeder bikes, skim speeders, and podracers, across diverse circuits.

At the heart of the story are Darius Pax, the founder of the Galactic League; Kestar Bull, who is leveraging his status as league champion to expand his influence; and Shade, a pilot with a personal vendetta against the Bull family. Players step into the role of Shade, joining the Galactic League and embarking on a journey to take down the current champion with the help of Darius Pax, the engineer Hibby, and a legendary podracer.

The game features four modes: Campaign, Arcade, Scenario, and Multiplayer. The Campaign is a run-based solo mode that lets players experience the Galactic League from Shade's perspective. Arcade is a time-trial mode featuring events based on the league's various vehicles and regions, while Scenario offers long-term challenges focused on specific characters. In Multiplayer, players can compete against others via Quick Race or Tour modes.

In the Campaign, players can customize their character and progress through a brief story. Customization options include outfits, helmet types, colors, and even voice selection. These customized appearances and voices are reflected directly in-game.

The Campaign involves navigating the world to advance the story. Because the structure is linear, players cannot freely roam the map or engage in open-ended conversations with NPCs. Instead, the story unfolds in short segments along a set path, leading into the qualifying races.

However, the overall flow of the game is more than just running a series of set races. The Campaign centers on the Galactic Tour, which consists of three acts. As players progress through the tour, they choose from various events such as standard races, eliminator races, field tests, and mystery encounters. While the event structure and layout change with every run, the order of planets in each act remains fixed, providing a consistent learning curve even through repeated playthroughs.

Each event type carries different rewards and risks. While players can aim for greater rewards, they also risk losing their league entry tokens. These tokens are required to participate in the tour. If a player crashes too often or fails to meet specific conditions in an event, they lose tokens. Losing all entry tokens ends the current tour, forcing the player to restart.

After each event, players receive rewards and can adjust their vehicle builds. Upgrades enhance base stats like cornering, afterburners, resilience, ramjets, and battery life. Parts provide passive effects based on vehicle condition or driving environment, while active abilities can be triggered on the track for offensive or defensive advantages. These are further complemented by 'racer styles,' which add depth to playstyles and build strategies.

In short, the game is a cycle of choosing events, securing rewards, and deciding how to upgrade your vehicle. A single part can shift your strategy, and when multiple effects combine, even the same race can be approached in entirely different ways.

While the tutorial race required using a specific craft, the full game allows players to use a variety of vehicles, including landspeeders, speeder bikes, and skim speeders. Each vehicle has distinct characteristics, making the handling feel significantly different for each one.

The landspeeder offers the most intuitive handling, focusing on following racing lines and drifting through corners. The speeder bike is small, agile, and has excellent acceleration, but tends to swing wide in corners; however, it can use 'kinetic bursts' to maintain speed on narrow lines and tight turns. The skim speeder leans into wide turns and utilizes 'knife-edge' maneuvers for advanced handling. The driving experience changes drastically depending on which vehicle you choose.

In addition to the standard afterburner boost, racing speeders are equipped with a ramjet. While the afterburner is a relatively safe way to accelerate, the ramjet is a high-risk boost that provides greater speed at the cost of generating heat. Overusing the ramjet leads to a 'redline' state, which carries the risk of explosion. Players must balance speed by monitoring the course environment and their vehicle's condition rather than simply burning boost continuously.

The most striking aspect of the demo is, unsurprisingly, the ability to race through various iconic Star Wars planets. The immersive quality is exceptional, as each planet's unique characteristics are faithfully recreated. The demo featured leagues across Jakku, Rantaana, Ando Prime, and Derven Akos.

Jakku is a desert planet littered with the wreckage of the Empire's final battle, where intense heat and debris impact driving. Rantaana features a mix of tropical forests and volcanic terrain, where lava and water alter the flow of the race—water helps cool the vehicle, while lava causes overheating. Ando Prime is set in a frozen tundra; the cold environment allows for longer ramjet usage but introduces variables in handling. Derven Akos serves as a major hub for the Galactic League, testing a pilot's skill with a course that blends various environmental hazards.

The presentation is also top-notch. There are dedicated cutscenes for special moments, such as when a vehicle is damaged from a collision or when a player executes a perfectly timed drift. The intensity of the race is well-conveyed, as collisions, evasive maneuvers, and boost usage are all visually impactful.

Between races, players visit the Paddock—a temporary base where racers gather to talk, maintain their vehicles, and purchase parts. It serves as a space to catch your breath and prepare for the next leg of the journey, with Hibby's workshop providing the means to install new parts or tune the vehicle.

Star Wars: Galactic Racers is scheduled for release on October 6, 2026, for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.