Forza Horizon's Creative Lead Launches Indie Studio with Racing-Crime Game

Mike Brown, creative director on Forza Horizon 5, has founded Maverick Games and announced Clutch, which merges racing and criminal gameplay across a French Riviera open world launching spring 2027. The move reflects a broader trend of talent moving from major publishers to independent studios, though games mixing crime and racing have historically struggled to match the success of pure racing or action titles.