Following the studio's formation in 2024, Maverick Games has revealed its debut title, an open-world, narrative-driven racing game named Clutch. The studio is spear-headed by Playground Games veterans, with experience across most of the Forza Horizon series.
Clutch is described as a cinematic open-world racer, following the rise of sibling racers competing in a prestigious racing series called R1K. The series has sanctioned events that you'll partake in, but also acts as a cover for the Midnight Collective: a series of underground racers that is meant to show the seedier side of the game's campaign.
The campaign plays out in a living world, with PvPvE elements determining the power of several crews and their alliances within the game's story. You'll be able to react to these shifts within the context of your own campaign, partaking in a mix of planned and spontaneous races that Maverick Games says can pop up at anytime. How all these elements work together is a little vague as it stands, but a debut trailer later this week at Summer Game Fest should hopefully clear that up.
As for the racing, Maverick Games says it plans to deliver a distinct style of arcade action by leveraging an in-house physics engine and its open-world sandbox design to create some chaotic races. Vehicles will be open to customization, with Maverick Games teasing that there will be ways for players to create one-of-a-kind rides that it hopes will help players build stronger connections with their favorite cars.
Amazon was initially set to publish Clutch, but dropped out of the deal earlier this year before it had been formally reveal. Maverick Games founder and creative director Mike Brown said at the time that the studio was in conversations with other partners to ensure that its debut title remained on track for release, which is currently set for spring 2027.
