We’re back for another entry in our The Long Game series, where we go over things you can invest in early in games that pay off in the long run. This time, we’re traveling to a galaxy far, far away for Star Wars: Galactic Racer, the new racing game from Fuse Games.

First, we should start with the basics. Galactic Racer gives you three vehicles to choose from, and they come with very different strengths and weaknesses. You can upgrade all three, but it pays to understand which stats are important for each vehicle, especially to prepare you for the more difficult challenges that await later in the game.

There are both temporary and permanent upgrades, and throughout the single-player campaign, you’ll get a random set of three to choose from. Certain multiplayer modes also let you choose from random sets of temporary upgrades, but permanent ones are exclusive to the campaign.

Upgrades cost tuning points, which are basically Galactic Racer’s version of skill points, and the cost goes up each time you upgrade. You can respec your allocated points, so you won’t get stuck with an unoptimized vehicle, but these are the upgrades we recommend focusing on for each vehicle.

Landspeeder

The Landspeeder is your standard, well-balanced vehicle. It has easy handling and high defense against collisions, whether you’re hitting the walls of the track or being attacked by your fellow racers. Since it’s naturally balanced, we recommend you focus on upgrades that allow for a little more creativity during races.

That starts with upgrading the Afterburner, which affects your acceleration, deceleration, and boost power. It allows you to boost more frequently and hit a higher top speed, and the benefit of being able to go faster in a race should be pretty obvious. We also recommend upgrading the Ramjet for basically the same reason, it’ll get you higher top speeds.

Lastly, it’s a good idea to upgrade the Battery, which determines how often you’re able to activate your abilities. Since the Landspeeder has such balanced stats, it lends itself to a wide variety of different abilities.

Speeder Bike

The Speeder Bike is the smallest of the vehicles, but it also has the fastest acceleration and a special Kinetic Burst that gives you an extra boost when you come out of a drift. We recommend leaning into that and creating your build around it.

Upgrading Kinetic Burst improves both the speed you maintain during a drift and your boost when finishing it. However, to handle that increased speed, you also need to upgrade your Cornering. It gives you better handling around tight turns, allowing you to harness your excellent drifting speed without careening into the wall.

While the Speeder Bike is quick, it’s also fragile and a common target for your opponents. To combat that, we recommend upgrading its Resilience, which is basically its defense. It’s never going to be a tank, but making it at least a bit sturdier can help with its main weakness.

Skim Speeder

Last but not least, the Skim Speeder is the widest of the bunch, and we recommend using that to your advantage. Its sturdier body makes it the best option for going on the offensive and attacking opposing racers.

Upgrading your Ramjet allows you to turn your vehicle into a missile that can clip other vehicles without endangering your own pilot. Of course, since you’re going to be taking a lot of contact with this playstyle, you should also upgrade your Resilience.

The main weakness of the Skim Speeder is also thanks to its width: it’s harder to handle, especially around turns. To help address that issue, we recommend upgrading your Cornering. Basically, with the Skim Speeder and Bike Speeder, you should upgrade both Cornering and Resilience, but for opposite reasons because their strengths are also opposites.

Article authored by IGN Global and presented by Charles Schwab. IGN Global and Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. are separate, unaffiliated companies.