It’s not every day a studio’s debut comes from someone who led the creative side of Forza Horizon. That’s the story behind Clutch, the first game from Maverick Games, an independent studio founded by former Forza Horizon creative director Mike Brown. It’s a cinematic open-world action-driving game, and it’s heading to PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC in spring 2027.
As a car enthusiast for most of my life and someone who works in the industry, I’ve covered my share of driving games over the years. A debut from one of the people who helped define Forza Horizon gets my attention, especially since the series’ most recent entry, Forza Horizon 6, absolutely won me over. Granted, Brown likely had nothing to do with Forza Horizon 6’s development, but he should at least understand a thing or two about what makes a driving game fun.
Clutch isn’t chasing another Horizon, though. It’s built around a story-driven campaign starring sibling racing prodigies competing in the R1K, a fictional series that’s spent 100 years as the proving ground for the world’s best drivers. Away from the pomp of the R1K sits the Midnight Collective, an underground scene more interested in style and the raw thrill of speed than trophies. When the hero ends up in trouble and needs a fixer, the underbelly of the R1K gets cracked wide open.
Out in the open world, Clutch runs as a PvPvE sandbox built around chasing position, reputation, and rewards while juggling shifting alliances, escalating pursuits, and rival crews. Missions and races come in both hand-crafted and spontaneous varieties, and Maverick is pitching improvised, high-speed getaways over scripted set pieces.
The part I’m most curious about is the customization, one of the aspects of Forza Horizon 6 that ended up being a disappointment for me. Maverick says Clutch runs on a proprietary physics engine paired with a personalization system built around identity and style as much as raw performance, going past paint and aftermarket parts into the finer details of owning a car. The idea is to reward creative flair as much as where you finish.
The official pitch for Clutch promises a generational leap for the driving genre, but that’s pretty much what you’d expect a founder to say at a reveal. The first real look at the story, cast, and world comes this Friday, June 5, during the Summer Game Fest showcase.
