Former Forza Horizon leads working on narrative-led AAA driving game

• Fresh AAA open-world driving game is on the way
• Maverick Games announced its existence 18 months ago
• But now, the genre of its first project is known
• Amazon Games lined up as the publisher

Formerly announced in January 2023, but formed in 2022, Maverick Games is a nascent studio formed by senior Forza Horizon figures combined with Sumo Digital and Electronic Arts alums.

Nearly 18 months later the genre of its first game has been announced – narrative-led open-world driving.

It has also snagged a publisher in the form of Amazon Games and shed some light on its narrative-led design.

A co-creator of teenage angst/development TV show SKins Jamie Brittain is working on the game, assisting in the story elements and crafting new characters for the fresh IP.

Meanwhile, no less than six of the Warwick-based startup’s leadership team have worked on the Forza Horizon franchise.

“Lots of great driving games have amazing gameplay, amazing content,” said studio head and creative director at Maverick, Mike Brown – Creative Director on 2021’s Forza Horizon 5.

“But to really cross that bridge, to become a game that people genuinely love, then there needs to be that human connection where you’re actually rooting for these characters, falling in love with these characters.

“That, I think, is a place where our game will be able to really differentiate itself from the other titles in the genre.”

A release window and even name for the game are not yet known, but it is being touted as ‘AAA’ in scope and is being created for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Maverick isn’t the only studio filled with ex-Forza Horizon talent, with Lighthouse Games founded by Playground Games co-founder Gavin Raeburn also believed to be working on an open-world driving game.