Anakin built his own podracer in a cave! With a box of scraps! Wait, wrong franchise? Either way, if there’s anything to remember about Anakin Skywalker besides the fact that he hates sand, he’s a damn good mechanic. And since Star Wars: Galactic Racer flight stick controls didn’t come with the release, racing fans took it to mean that they didn’t exist yet. So they got to work.
Easily the highlight of Reddit’s podracer rigs would be the one from Andy (u/andynmedia), who caught our attention after he used his flight sticks to mimic podracer controls. The minute-long Reddit post has it all – tight corners, close calls, slick drifting, and a sweet dance between the Afterburner and the Ramjet. It’s easy to get lost in the thrill of it all with the bumper view, so naturally people got to wonder how exactly he made this miracle of the Force work.
Enter the HOSAS/HOTAS Bridge
According to Andy, the core inspiration came to him from Sega’s Star Wars: Racer Arcade. This was a 2000 arcade game tie-in to The Phantom Menace that had just been released a year before. The game was based on the podracer scenes in Episode 1, and players actually sat on a replica of Anakin’s pod cockpit and had throttle sticks instead of wheels.
In Racer Arcade, you push both throttle sticks to go forward and pull either the left or the right one to turn the pod. Andy took the same principle, converted his flight sticks into podracer sticks, then incorporated the extra mechanics of Galactic Racer.
How can this create my own Galactic Racer flight stick?
Andy gave us a peek behind the magic on his YouTube channel (JaffaQuake), where he lays out his Galactic Racer flight stick setup. Basically, his program is a HOSAS/HOTAS Bridge that connects to your flight sticks or driving wheel, which then “acts” like an Xbox Controller that the PC can recognize.
Everything is in his Linktree, complete with GitHub and Google Drive variants of his software and relevant FAQs. Plus, it seems rather straightforward to set up. The YouTube tutorial took roughly a minute and a half to explain everything, and everything else is just pure podracing awesomeness.
And it didn’t stop there. Since the GitHub repo being used was technically open source, even more players used this to showcase more setup options over on Reddit.
And then there’s the 3D printed throttle kit
Soon, a lot of Redditors were finally able to enjoy their Galactic Racer Tours with the majestic flight sticks and steering wheels they deserved. And for those who want a more intense racing experience, they can skip the low-tech Earth flight sticks and get moving with “the real deal” – actual podracer controls. Or at least, 3D-printed Galactic Racer flight stick kits.
Taking Andy’s kit to the next level was Lins, who took the HOSAS/HOTAS Bridge and made a Podracing Sim kit. If you purchase this from LINSLABS (and there are even more toys and gadgets he designed), you get STL files for the controller parts, a resource guide and assembly instructions, a microcontroller code and a setup guide, and base options so you can get your electronics in too.
That’s a bit of a mouthful, but the idea is that you get to experience part of Anakin building his pod himself. When Andy saw the sim racer in action (via u/distillers_guide, Lins’s Reddit), he was awestruck.
“My friends all sent it to me and I was wondering why everyone was sending it to me,” he said in the YouTube video. “Then I read the description and found out he was using my software. So, that really got me pumped.”
More ways to have podracing fun
Even before Andy’s bridge, some gamers already found ways to use dual joysticks with their Galactic Racer gameplay. One such example was RenderForge (u/Rue-666), who showcased slick wide-screen gameplay with a more expansive setup, complete with a tactile dashboard hub.
Based on the description, he built this hub using a Stream Deck to simulate the Pre-Flight Check buttons, a Sim Hub for boosting, and a VoCore screen to show off more stats. According to his Reddit post, he used x360ce, which is a general-purpose tool that makes any controller look like an Xbox pad.
YouTube account @jackofsometradesmasterofnone even said, “This in VR will be epic!”
And it didn’t take long for other podracers to deliver.
Let’s take it to the virtual world
You can take what we’ve gotten so far – Andy’s bridge, a custom podracing sim kit, and/or your favorite throttle sticks – and call it a day. But if you do have a VR headset and time in your hands, VoodooDE VR can help bring it all together with an in-depth guide.
For this one, you need what’s called the UEVR Nightly Build, which is something tied to the Flat2VR Discord server, and a replacement DLL file to fix a game-specific bug. After you run UEVR as an administrator, you can import the zipped game profile. Then, after you open SteamVR and OpenVR, you can load Galactic Racer and UEVR injects into the game and switches it into VR as soon as you load a race. He cites a specific bug that might crash the game when you return to the menu, and it would take some time to transition back into VR from the menu to when you load a race.
LunchAndVR shows off a similar VR-based build, and he combined Andy’s bridge alongside a UEVR profile with a camera mod, and a Pimax Crystal Super with SBOYS driver headset.
Take podracing one step closer to reality
There are also Star Wars fans who want a more authentic Galaxy Far, Far Away experience. And while building a ride for an actual Galactic League might be too expensive, there are fans who made the next best thing – simulating the actual tech.
Andy pointed out in his own tutorial how much he enjoyed seeing everyone else’s setups, especially now that his bridge helped them bring their podracing dreams closer to reality.
“It’s starting to look like everybody’s building their own pod at home,” Andy said.
And perhaps the closest thing we got to a pod came from u/Professional-Name724, whose setup is just a chassis away from being a legit podracer. He detailed the most in-depth setup we’ve got to date, and he highlighted a multi-layer kit in his Reddit post.
“This is a childhood dream come true,” he wrote. “I played hours of Star Wars: Episode 1 – Racer on N64, and that was 26 years ago.”
And now his goal was to replicate a full VR experience of Galactic Racer.
He wanted to do it with full motion and immersive control, which he’s done by combining a five-axis motion platform, a G-seat, and bass shaker. The VR layer he took from VoodooDE’s tutorial, but now he used an eRacing Lab 5D0F rig to move with the race. He also used a GS5 seat and G-Belt to press and pull on the body for that booster thrill. For the controls, he chained Joystick Gremlin, vJoy and UCR instead of the Bridge. And for the bass shakers, he used Voicemeter Banana for that crisp surround sound.
Now that is podracing.
Frequently Asked Questions about Galactic Racer flight stick setups
Does Galactic Racer support VR?
Not officially, but that hasn’t stopped the community. The community UEVR mod adds it on SteamVR headsets. It’s the most popular method to play the game in VR at the moment.
Which flight sticks work with Galactic Racer?
From what we’ve read, VKB, Virpil, Logitech, Thrustmaster, and Microsoft work through the Bridge.
Published: Oct 19, 2026 09:45 am