Amazon Ditches Maverick’s Open World Driving Game, Sticks Only with Tomb Raider and Luna
Amazon Game Studios has ended its publishing agreement with Maverick Games, continuing a clear pattern of tightening focus across its gaming investments. According to a statement shared with The Game Business, Amazon says the move is part of a strategic evolution that prioritizes projects aligned with Amazon’s scale, specifically pointing to its Luna relaunch and its Tomb Raider partnership with Crystal Dynamics.
From a portfolio management perspective, this is another high signal decision that Amazon is reducing exposure to traditional game publishing risk, especially long cycle projects that require sustained funding, global marketing runway, and multi year production support. The shift lands after multiple recent pullbacks across Amazon’s internal and external gaming efforts, and it reinforces a narrower operating thesis: concentrate on fewer bets where Amazon can lean on ecosystem advantages, cloud distribution, and brand partnerships that already have mainstream recognition.
Amazon’s spokesperson described the Maverick title as a compelling narrative led driving experience and said the studio is being released from the agreement so it can pursue a publisher whose priorities are better aligned to bring the game to market. That positioning matters because it frames the decision as a strategic mismatch rather than a quality call, which is often the corporate playbook when a publisher exits a project but wants to preserve relationships and avoid spooking talent, partners, or future deal flow.
For Maverick Games, the important business reality is that losing a publisher this deep into development creates immediate execution pressure, even if the studio remains operational. Publishing support is not only about funding, it is also about production services, milestone governance, platform relationships, QA scale, localization, marketing muscle, and the downstream distribution machine that turns a finished build into an actual commercial release. That said, Maverick is leaning into reassurance. The studio has publicly thanked Amazon for the opportunity, confirmed the project is still in active development, and stated it is already in talks with other partners to replace Amazon in the publishing role.
Maverick Games was founded in early 2023 by former Forza Horizon developers and is still building an open world driving game targeting PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S and X. The creative pitch is especially noteworthy in today’s racing and driving landscape because players are increasingly looking for more than just handling models and car lists. A narrative led open world approach suggests Maverick is aiming for a premium blend of driving, exploration, and story pacing, which is exactly the kind of concept that can break out if it lands with strong identity and content density.
The big question now is timeline and continuity. If Maverick secures a new partner quickly, the transition can be mostly invisible to players. If the search drags, the project risks a slower production cadence, revised scope, or a delayed launch window. Either way, the studio’s ability to keep talent retention stable while negotiating a new deal will be the core KPI that determines whether this is a temporary bump or a structural setback.
If you were Maverick Games, would you prioritize signing with a major publisher for scale, or a smaller partner that gives more creative control, even if marketing reach is lower?
