Former Forza Horizon 5 Creative Director's Studio Announces Racing Game CLUTCH
The termination of the Amazon Games publishing deal and the shift to an independent reveal marks a significant change in how a high-profile racing game from a veteran team will reach the market.
Reporting from 2 sources: Denfaminicogamer, Game Spark.
Maverick Games, the studio co-founded by former Playground Games creative director Mike Brown, announced its debut title CLUTCH on June 2. The open-world racing game is built on a customized version of Unreal Engine 5 and features what the studio describes as unprecedented car model detail, from exterior curves to interior stitching. Deep customization options include purchase choices, modification parts, and small items that give the car interior a lived-in feel. The story is set across two worlds: the commercial racing series R1K, which has run for over a century, and the Midnight Collective, a group of car enthusiasts not driven by money or fame. The announcement trailer also showed a police car chase and a Tech Mod that allows drifting by shooting a wire at a pole. Amazon Games was originally set to publish the title, but the contract was terminated in February 2026 due to a shift in Amazon's gaming strategy. A more detailed trailer, including cast information, is scheduled to debut at Summer Game Fest on June 6.
Maverick Games was co-founded in 2022 by Mike Brown, who served as creative director on Forza Horizon 5 and worked on game design for Forza Horizon 4 and earlier titles. The studio's first project, CLUTCH, was originally under a publishing agreement with Amazon Games, but that contract was terminated in February 2026 as Amazon changed its gaming business strategy. Brown said the development period for CLUTCH is the longest of his career. The announcement video showed little gameplay footage; the studio plans to release a more detailed trailer at Summer Game Fest, which airs early on June 6 Japan time, including cast member reveals. The game's story follows a protagonist caught up in trouble between the surface-level commercial racing series R1K and the underground Midnight Collective. The Tech Mod shown in the trailer, which lets players drift by shooting a wire at a pole, offers a new movement method beyond standard driving.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.