Amazon publishing narrative-led racer from former Forza Horizon devs, Skins co-creator
Behind the wheel.
Amazon Games is publishing a new narrative-led, open-world racing game from former Forza Horizon developers.
Developer Maverick Games is based in the UK and was founded in 2022 by key members of the Forza Horizon development team at Playground Games.
Its first AAA game is set for release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, with lead writing from Skins co-creator Jamie Brittain (yes, that E4 teen drama show).
"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 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."
Giving further hints at the new game, Brown added: "Lots of great driving games have amazing gameplay, amazing content. 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. There's nothing about this genre that prevents it from having amazing characters and amazing stories - it's just not really been explored yet."
The unannounced game will join other Amazon-published games like MMOs New World and Lost Ark, as well as the forthcoming Crystal Dynamics Tomb Raider game and a Lord of the Rings MMO.
Amazon also opened a new development studio in Bucharest earlier this month to support with projects.
As for Playground Games itself, it's working on the next instalment of the Fable series instead of Forza Horizon. The Forza Motorsport games are developed by Turn 10 Studios.
It's unknown if we'll receive more news about Fable at the forthcoming Xbox Games Showcase, though last summer the game's narrative lead left Playground Games.