Ex-‘Forza Horizon' lead announces new racing game called ‘Clutch'

Although “Forza Horizon” has established itself as the preeminent open-world racing game, the genre does have room for growth and improvement. One of those avenues is through storytelling because that has never been a strong suit of the series. The franchise has mostly been a celebration of car culture and the locale rather than an immersive and gripping narrative.

That could be an opening for Maverick Games. The indie studio founded by Mike Brown, the former creative director on “Forza Horizon,” has a new project called “Clutch” that bills itself as “a cinematic open-world action-driving game.”It focuses on two racing prodigies competing in the R1K, a historic series that has been a proving ground for the world’s top drivers for 100 years,” according to a news release. While that’s the face of professional competition, players will also take part in the underground Midnight Collective, which appears to be focused more on street racing.

"Maverick has assembled a dream team of car lovers and driving fans with decades of experience building genre-defining open-world racing games," said Brown, who is also the creative director on the project, in the release. "Our mission from day-one is for Clutch to push the genre into a new era, innovate through new types of open-world sandbox gameplay and deliver a generational leap on the staples of why we love driving games."

According to the studio, players will have to deal with shifting alliances and car chases that apparently draw hot pursuits. The release describes a dynamic world with PvPvE that features handcrafted and spontaneous missions. If it can harness the freedom of “Forza” with some of the action-heavy, set-piece missions of say a “Far Cry” game, “Clutch” could be something special.

Fans can find out more about this title at the Summer Game Fest Showcase on June 5. The game is planned for a spring 2027 launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and Series S and PC.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 3:23 AM.