{"rewrite":{"id":"r_a8cc6ffb90099c8f9383fef8","clusterId":"c_f3e65bcc49d35406f3adc290","slug":"open-world-racing-game-clutch-from-former-forza-horizon-developer-launches-spring-2027","model":"deepseek-v4-flash","headline":"Open-World Racing Game CLUTCH From Former Forza Horizon Developer Launches Spring 2027","summary":"Maverick Games, the UK studio co-founded by former Forza Horizon creative director Mike Brown, announced its debut title CLUTCH during Summer Game Fest 2026 on June 6. The open-world action driving game is set in the French Riviera and will launch in spring 2027 on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. The announcement trailer showed a story-driven experience with two distinct racing scenes: the R1K, a professional racing series with a 100-year history, and the Midnight Collective, an underground group that races at night for passion rather than profit. The protagonist, one of a pair of sibling genius racers, gets drawn into the hidden side of the R1K after an early-game incident. The trailer also featured dialogue between characters, police chases on public roads, and an improbable sequence where a car jumps from an elevated road and shoots a wire toward a helicopter. The game uses Unreal Engine 5.","whyItMatters":"CLUTCH marks the first project from a studio built by key Forza Horizon veterans, and its dual-racing-world premise signals a deliberate attempt to differentiate from the arcade-open-world template that studio helped define.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eMaverick Games was founded in 2023 by Mike Brown, who served as creative director at Playground Games on the Forza Horizon series. Several other founding members also came from that franchise. The studio teased CLUTCH on June 3 before the full reveal at Summer Game Fest. The game's two racing organizations-the commercial R1K and the underground Midnight Collective-structure a narrative where the protagonist lives a double life as both a professional and a street racer. The trailer showed racing on circuits and public roads, the latter involving police chases. The helicopter scene at the end of the trailer is described by one source as unexpected for a racing game. All three cluster sources agree on the spring 2027 release window and the platform list, though one source omits the Epic Games Store mention. The official website opened alongside the trailer.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"CLUTCH, the debut from former Forza Horizon devs at Maverick Games, has a protagonist who races in a pro series by day and an underground circuit by night. Spring 2027 on PC, PS5, Xbox.","twitterPost":"The CLUTCH trailer ends with a car jumping off an elevated road and shooting a wire at a helicopter. That is not a typo. Open-world racing game from ex-Forza Horizon leads, out spring 2027.","threadsPost":null,"newsletterBlurb":"Maverick Games, founded by Forza Horizon veterans, revealed its debut open-world racing game CLUTCH at Summer Game Fest 2026. The story follows a pair of sibling racers navigating both a professional series and an underground night-racing scene. It launches spring 2027 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"GAME Watch\",\"url\":\"https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/2115040.html\",\"title\":\"Maverick Games Announces Open-World Driving Game \\\"CLUTCH\\\" [SGF2026]\"},{\"source\":\"4Gamer.net\",\"url\":\"https://www.4gamer.net/games/012/G101234/20260605063/\",\"title\":\"Open-world racing game \\\"CLUTCH\\\" trailer released, featuring an \\\"aerial rendezvous\\\" scene with a helicopter\"},{\"source\":\"Automaton\",\"url\":\"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260606-447720/\",\"title\":\"Open-World Racing Game 'CLUTCH' to Launch in Spring 2027. A Double Life: Thriving as a Pro Racer by Day, Taking on 'Underground Races' by Night\"},{\"source\":\"Game Spark\",\"url\":\"http://www.gamespark.jp/article/2026/06/06/167498.html\",\"title\":\"Open-World Racing Game 'CLUTCH' from Former 'Forza Horizon' Developer to Release in Spring 2027 [SGF2026]\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":5326,"outputTokens":961,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1780704143,"createdAt":"2026-06-06T00:00:09.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-06-06T00:01:21.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-06T00:01:21.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_f3e65bcc49d35406f3adc290","canonicalTitle":"『Forza Horizon』元開発者手掛けるオープンワールドレースゲーム『CLUTCH』2027年春リリースへ【SGF2026】","representativeArticleId":"a_57ed4fc8e7dd1baffe871c20","sourceCount":4,"writtenSourceCount":4,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":false,"entitiesJson":null,"contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-06-05T22:52:26.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-06-05T23:41:53.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-06-06T00:01:21.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"4Gamer.net","url":"https://www.4gamer.net/games/012/G101234/20260605063/","title":"オープンワールドレースゲーム「CLUTCH」のトレイラー公開。ヘリコプターとの“空中ランデブー”シーンも"},{"source":"GAME Watch (Impress)","url":"https://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/2115040.html","title":"Maverick Gamesが贈るオープンワールドドライブゲーム「CLUTCH」発表【SGF2026】"},{"source":"Automaton","url":"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20260606-447720/","title":"オープンワールド・レースゲーム『CLUTCH』2027年春発売へ。昼はプロレーサーとして活躍、夜は“アングラレース”に挑む二重生活"},{"source":"Game Spark","url":"http://www.gamespark.jp/article/2026/06/06/167498.html","title":"『Forza Horizon』元開発者手掛けるオープンワールドレースゲーム『CLUTCH』2027年春リリースへ【SGF2026】"}],"entities":null,"keyFacts":["Maverick Games, founded in 2023 by former Forza Horizon creative director Mike Brown, announced its debut title CLUTCH at Summer Game Fest on June 6, 2026.","CLUTCH launches in spring 2027 on PC via Steam and Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.","The open-world driving game is set in the French Riviera and features two racing organizations: the professional R1K and the underground Midnight Collective.","The announcement trailer showed a story-driven experience with police chases, a car jumping from an elevated road to shoot a wire at a helicopter, and dialogue between characters.","The game uses Unreal Engine 5."]}