Star Wars: Galactic Racer is bringing back both Sebulba and Ben Quadinaros, podracers from The Phantom Menace

Two of the podracers from The Phantom Menace are returning for the upcoming video game Star Wars: Galactic Racer.

The first trailer for the game revealed Sebulba playing a part in the story, and then more recently, the gameplay trailer showed that Ben Quadinaros is coming back too. The game is set after the events of Return of the Jedi, during a time where the New Republic struggles to rebuild from the destruction of the Empire. As a result, an unsanctioned racing circuit – known as the Galactic League – is formed, giving pilots a chance at fame and fortune. In the game, players will follow a lone young racer named Shade, who is driven by glory and revenge.

He’ll go up against plenty of other racers, including his ruthless rival, Kestar. But it seems some older racers will play a part as well, including both Sebulba and Ben Quadinaros. These names will be glup shittos to many, but they’re recognizable faces from one of the most thrilling moments in The Phantom Menace, as young Anakin Skywalker races in the dangerous Bunta Eve Classic on Tatooine, winning his freedom and changing the fate of the galaxy.

Sebulba was a Dug racer who resorted to dirty tactics to win, but who nonetheless was known as the best of the best in the Bunta Eve races. Though he lost to Skywalker in that race, he continued to race through the Clone Wars and the Imperial era. At one point during the Clone Wars, he had a showdown with Ben Quadinaros, the two having formed “the sport’s greatest rivalry”. Quadinaros was also involved in the Bunta Eve Classic in The Phantom Menace, but the Toong racer never really got into the competition. As the race began, Quadinaros’s podracer stalled out due to issues with the power coupling.

The two of them were two of the most recognizable faces in the racing sequence during the movie, and it’s fun that they’re being brought back for this story. These are small connections, but ones that feel natural and exciting for those who will be playing the game, to play alongside some galactic legends in the racing world.