But whether you still need convincing or want to see more, a gameplay deep-dive stream has been announced for June 25th at 9 AM PT. Alongside Brown, art director and studio co-founder Ben Penrose will be on hand, showcasing the narrative, the cast and the R1K pro circuit. You’ll also learn more about the street racing scene and how the heists pan out. It should be a pretty packed stream with a first look at live gameplay.

Clutch launches in Spring 2027 for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. Players control a racer, Theo, who’s about following the rules by day and partaking in illegal activities by night. Riviera is their playground, with mountains, harbors, and coastal roads to navigate. Perhaps the most intriguing part of all this is the social aspect of the Midnight Collective, as you gain more reputation depending on your real-time actions.

We’ll find out how deep it all goes later this week, but in the meantime, check out the official reveal trailer for some more gameplay.

The story of Clutch will revolve around a pair of siblings who have been described as racing prodigies. While both of them want to compete in the prestigious R1K racing series, they also end up having to deal with the darker underbelly of the sport, interacting with groups like the Midnight Collective, and even outright criminals.

Along with its main narrative, Clutch is also slated to feature “a level of detail and accuracy never before seen in in-game car models,” according to Maverick Games. This is thanks to its use of a custom version of Unreal Engine 5, which has been thoroughly modified to allow for extreme details, like “every exterior curve, every fleck of paint, every interior stitch, every groove of tire wear”.

Along with the racing and story, Clutch is also slated to feature an open world that players can drive around in, and will likely also reward creative exploration with things like more customization parts and potentially even performance upgrades.

Clutch doesn’t yet have a release date aside from a Spring 2027 window. It is being developed for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

When the livestream’s countdown hit 0, we were greeted by the studio celebrating the fact that they finally get to show off Clutch, which has seemingly been in development for three and a half years. The title has been described as being about “a love of driving, a connection between car and driver, and the raw thrill of speed.”

Unlike most racing games out there, Clutch will focus quite heavily on its story. Its plot revolves around a pair of siblings who also happen to be racing prodigies. The two are competing in the R1K racing series, which has been described as a “prestigious and historic” series of races that has also served as the proving ground for the best drivers in the world for more than a century.

Aside from the R1K itself, there is also a group known as the Midnight Collective – a group of enthusiasts who don’t really care about the money or fame offered by the R1K, and only really care about the act of driving and racing.

As for the plot, not too many details were revealed aside from the fact that the protagonist will get into some kind of trouble in the early parts of Clutch, leading them to look up the “services” of a “fixer”. This leads to the protagonist diving headfirst into the underworld.

Clutch has been developed using a custom version of Unreal Engine 5, which the studio claims has allowed them to achieve “a level of detail and accuracy never before seen in in-game car models.” This means that “every exterior curve, every fleck of paint, every interior stitch, every groove of tire wear” has been “recreated perfectly”. This level of detail isn’t just exclusive to modern vehicles, however. Older cars will also have minor details added to them, like signs of wear and tear, and signs that the cars have actually been driven and loved by their previous owners.

The studio has also noted that Clutch sets a “new benchmark for car customization”. These statements are quite bold, especially considering the level of visual fidelity that has been achieved in other driving games that offer similar features, like this year’s Forza Horizon 6.

While we don’t get too many details about the gameplay, a few things could be gleaned from the video, including the fact that players will likely also partake in plenty of illegal activities, such as bank robberies and high-speed police chases. Some parts of the video also indicate that players will get access to unique tools, like grappling hooks, that could potentially lead to Fast and Furious-styled shenanigans.

More details about Clutch are slated to be revealed during Summer Game Fest 2026, which will take place on June 5th at 2 PM PST. In the meantime, the studio has said that it is aiming for a Spring 2027 launch across PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

Despite the fact that the posts were clearly made in jest, the fact that Maverick Games has started bringing up its project indicates that we might actually see an official trailer, or at least a teaser, coming out soon. The timing of the posts also indicates that we might see more of it during one of the many showcases that will be taking place over the next week.

A third post takes the teasing even further, featuring a link for a livestream that is counting down to something. At the time of publishing, this countdown sits at 5 days and 18 hours, and is accompanied by a video feed of a stationary car that has seemingly been kept inside an office. The timer will end on June 2nd, at 3 AM PST.

Founded by former Playground Games veterans, the first details about Maverick Games popped up in early 2023. The studio was described as being focused on AAA development and is based out of Leamington Spa. Among the veterans working at the studio include executive producer Tom Butcher (former lead producer at Playground), content director Gareth Harwood, audio director Fraser Strachan, and CTO Matt Craven. Former EA design director Elly Marshall had also joined the studio as its UX/UI director.

The studio had announced that its untitled “narrative-led open world driving game” was going to be published by Amazon Games back in 2024. However, earlier this year, the technology giant announced that it was no longer involved with the studio. In a statement, a spokesperson for Amazon Game Studios said that this decision would give Maverick Games more flexibility to find a publisher aligned with its priorities.

“As part of our strategic evolution to focus on projects that leverage Amazon’s unique strengths and scale, including the recent re-launch of Luna and our Tomb Raider franchise partnership with Crystal Dynamics, we have decided to release Maverick Games from their publishing agreement with Amazon Game Studios,” said the spokesperson.

“We have tremendous respect for the Maverick Games team and the compelling narrative-led driving experience they’re creating. This decision allows Maverick Games the flexibility to find a publishing partner whose strategic priorities are better aligned with bringing their game to market. We’re proud of what we accomplished together during our partnership and wish them every success in the future.”

In a follow-up post, creative director Mike Brown and co-founder and CEO Harindar Sangha thanked the company for its partnership, and confirmed that its driving game was still in development while discussions had begun with other publishers.

“We’re grateful to Amazon Games for their partnership and collaboration. Development of our debut title continues to progress as strongly as planned,” they said. “We’re in active dialogue with partners who share our long-term ambition for the IP and look forward to sharing more later this year.”

“As part of our strategic evolution to focus on projects that leverage Amazon’s unique strengths and scale, including the recent re-launch of Luna and our Tomb Raider franchise partnership with Crystal Dynamics, we have decided to release Maverick Games from their publishing agreement with Amazon Game Studios,” said the spokesperson.

“We have tremendous respect for the Maverick Games team and the compelling narrative-led driving experience they’re creating. This decision allows Maverick Games the flexibility to find a publishing partner whose strategic priorities are better aligned with bringing their game to market. We’re proud of what we accomplished together during our partnership and wish them every success in the future.”

Creative director Mike Brown and co-founder/CEO Harindar Sangha thanked Amazon Games for the partnership in their statement. They also noted that the narrative-focused driving game is still in development, and that the studio has already begun talks with other publishers.

“We’re grateful to Amazon Games for their partnership and collaboration. Development of our debut title continues to progress as strongly as planned,” they said. “We’re in active dialogue with partners who share our long-term ambition for the IP and look forward to sharing more later this year.”

Amazon Games had originally announced that it would be publishing the title by Maverick Games back in May 2024. At the time, VP Christoph Hartmann still led the division, but he left the company back in January.

While Maverick Games hasn’t yet revealed many details about its upcoming project, the studio comprises industry veterans who have previously worked at large studios, including Forza Horizon developer Playground Games. Brown himself served as the creative director on the series before his departure.

Maverick Games was founded in 2023, and has been working on its driving game since then. The project is described as a “narrative-led open world driving game”. It is still unclear, however, what form this narrative will take and what kind of driving gameplay will be offered. While the studio has a strong background in open-world racing titles, the lack of “racing” in the description might indicate a different approach.

Amazon Games kicked off its move away from AAA game publishing back in October, when the company halted development on New World: Aeternum and laid off over 14,000 employees. In December, the company also sold the rights for the in-development MOBA March of Giants to Ubisoft. The title was described as an “ambitious new entrant” into a genre dominated by Dota 2 and League of Legends.

Amazon Games has announced that it has signed on as the publisher for Maverick Games’ debut title, which Amazon describes as a “a narrative-led open world driving game”. The game, though currently unannounced, is confirmed to be in development for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

“We founded Maverick Games with a clear vision: to build a developer-first studio that would foster an environment of creativity and risk-taking,” said Maverick Games studio head and creative director Mike Brown. “This approach empowers our team to produce the most exceptional work of their careers. And ultimately, that means we are creating a game that our players are going to fall in love with. As we got to know the team at Amazon Games it quickly became clear that we had a shared ethos — a commitment to giving developers the space to really innovate in service of crafting experiences that players will find truly special. Without giving too much away, I will share that the team here is buzzing with excitement about our game and we can’t wait to share it with the world.”

“In our ongoing global search for talented development teams who are building compelling titles that players will love, Maverick Games stood out as a studio that can deliver on all fronts,” said Amazon Games VP Christoph Hartmann. “Mike and his team are the total package — proven game developers who are masters at their craft and aren’t content with the status quo. Their vision for this game is fresh and innovative, and we’re looking forward to working alongside them to bring it to players around the world.”

How long it’ll be before we hear more about Maverick’s title, or what launch window the studio and Amazon are currently targeting for the game, remains to be seen.

The open world racer joins Amazon’s growing portfolio of games, which, in addition to existing and ongoing titles like New World and Lost Ark, also includes other major upcoming games, like Crystal Dynamics’ next Tomb Raider title.

Other veterans joining the studio include executive producer Tom Butcher (former lead producer at Playground), content director Gareth Harwood, audio director Fraser Strachan and CTO Matt Craven. It also sees Elly Marshall, former design director at EA, joining as UX/UI director. Ben Penrose joins as art director, having recently been at Sharkmob but also having experience at Playground Games. Harinder Sangha serves as COO, with her previous experience including Sega Hardlight and Sumo Leamington.

“[In 2021] we shipped Forza Horizon 5, which was a thrill to work on,” said Brown. “As much as I had an amazing journey at Playground, I was asking myself, what’s next? Do I stick with this fun, good job? Or do I look for other opportunities? This opportunity came up. I was asked what my vision would be for a new studio…and it was lucky I had an idea in mind.”

Though there are only ten employees, Maverick aims to grow to 140 over time. Stay tuned for more details on its first game in the future.