Now that Maverick Games has confirmed a Monaco location for its upcoming game, CLUTCH, we wanted to dive into the finer details of the game's recreation of the famous city and its surrounding areas. And who better to do so that someone with first-hand knowledge who regularly visits the French Riviera?
Coming in Clutch. Sorry, CLUTCH is incoming. The open world racing game in development by Maverick Games has had a busy month of June. From an initial unveiling to a Spring 2027 release window announcement, story campaign presentations and now a confirmed location of Monaco and the surrounding French Riviera, there is a lot to take in with this upcoming title.
On June 25, official gameplay is due to be shown in a livestream on Maverick Games' YouTube channel, likely offering much more insight into the game.
But focusing on a real-world location and aiming to faithfully recreate what is widely considered a mecca for motorsport fans, it is important that CLUTCH gets its map right. Thanks to my job, I am lucky to have spent many a day in Monaco working on the Historic Grand Prix and so it is fair to say I know my way around the Principality. As such, from the moment I saw that the game is set to take place in the South East corner of France, I was keen to explore just how in-detail the development team is going in its accurate recreation.
Luckily, our close friend Lukas, otherwise known as LPN05 on YouTube has spent a bit of time with the in-development title and brought back some interesting insight into not only the game and its mechanics but the team's recreation of the French Riviera.
CLUTCH Map: An Impressive Recreation
I will touch on this aspect of Monaco again later on in this article, but before we get going, you must remember that Monaco is an old city built on the side of a cliff. As such, buildings almost overlap one another and the roads are incredibly narrow.
As you can see from Lukas' video, CLUTCH does appear to reflect that historic character with its recreation of the town. Throughout the city gameplay, the cars barely fit the tight lanes that make up the Principality's road network whilst the pedestrian walkways are equally as restrictive given the fact that buildings tower over the roads.
Complete the Monaco GP track in CLUTCH. Image: LPN05 on Youtube
Regardless of the video you watch, you will notice many locations recognisable as Monaco. From the road passing along the marina front that usually hosts Grand Prix corners like Tabac and the Swimming Pool to the iconic Hairpin leading towards Portier and the tunnel. Indeed, the entire circuit does look to be present though without barriers, something even I will have to get used to having only ever seen the circuit in race mode.
I have only ever seen Monaco with the barriers up, so CLUTCH will be a new experience. Image: Angus Martin
Watching through Grand Prix track footage, you will notice that the roads we all know and love are far wider than the rest of the city. This is realistic from my experience though in places, it does appear to be inflated a bit, perhaps to allow more room for sick drifts. But Monaco is more than an F1 circuit and so there are other locations many will not recognise from TV coverage.
Explore more than just the Monaco GP Circuit in CLUTCH. Image: LPN05 on Youtube
That said, whilst buildings are reportedly licensed to increase realism, Lukas does mention that this recreation of Monaco is fictionally expanded versus its real life counterpart and so not everything you see will be 100% accurate.
One big question I have that the newly released gameplay does not answer is whether or not players will be able to approach the Prince's Palace. In real life, this location sat atop the hill towards La Rascasse is heavily guarded with even photography and filming requiring permits. It is a location that offers a brilliant view over the city, especially the F1 track, and gets a stunning garden nearby.
Too Much Polish Applied?
Overall then, CLUTCH's recreation of Monaco town itself does appear to be successful. That said, nothing is perfect and so there are a few smaller points where the game perhaps fails to capture the truth to the Principality.
This particular car park does not match the rocky constructions you typically see in Monaco. Image: LPN05 on Youtube
By comparison, a real world Monaco car park - very boring. Image: Angus Martin
As the location of the most glamorous Grand Prix on the Formula One calendar, home to the rich and famous and a symbol of wealth, extravagance and excess, Monaco has garnered a reputation as one of the cleanest, most pristine places on Earth. Whilst that is most certainly the case as you drive around the streets in real life, it is not so true as you venture down below.
Built into the cliffs that mark the end of the European continent and the start of the Mediterranean, Monaco poses unique challenges to those trying to construct the vast buildings that house the world's multi-millionaires. And so, car parks typically do not appear to be as decorated and picture perfect as above ground. In the video, you will note a mission taking the player down into the depths of an underground car park, a car park that boggles the mind with its size, both the height of the ceilings and space available in which to park cars.
Whilst it is potentially possible that other car parks in-game present more like real life or even that tunnels connected to expensive apartment buildings are more sparkly than those used by F1 teams, this particular colourful and spacious cavern does not reflect the dingy spaces in which you struggle to park a hatchback let alone a six-figure supercar that I am used to.
The Monaco skyline looks to clean, missing cranes. Image: LPN05 on Youtube
Elsewhere, Monaco's cliffside nature also poses a challenge to building timelines and architectural strength. Regardless of the time of year you visit Monaco, you will always see swathes of crews conducting heavy construction work to either erect new apartment blocks or repair new ones. Cranes fill the city's skyline and tall screens block the view of any foundation work. Throughout the video, this is something I noticed as distinctly lacking to help build up Monaco's unique nature. Then again, no doubt keen to retain this view of a European El Dorado, Monaco itself may well have provided Maverick with stipulations to limit this work-in-progress vibe.
Monaco's Mountains
In addition to the Monegasque metropolis, CLUTCH will allow players to venture out of the town and into the surrounding mountainous scenery. In fact, the mountains above the Principality make for some of the best driving roads in the world combining supreme views of the sea with twists and turns galore.
Mountain roads may be wider than real life in CLUTCH. Image: LPN05 on Youtube
We are yet to get any real view of these more scenic parts of the map, but the one section Lukas' video does show is a main road that is arguably too wide versus the real world. Where the city brilliantly recreates Monaco's tight streets, I fear the mountains may suffer an affliction of racing game-itis. Symptoms include supercars capable of off-roading and roads wide enough for four cars.
That said, this is probably where you want the roads to be wider than reality to allow for higher speed traffic weaving and potentially the odd street race.
Discover La Turbie in CLUTCH. Image: Maverick Games
What I will say impresses me is a possible inclusion of smaller towns throughout the map. In the original announcement trailer, we see a Porsche Boxster racing through a tight street lined with plastic bollards and older, French-style houses. If I am correct, this is the road leading into La Turbie, one of the more famous mountain-top towns sitting above Monaco on the French side of the border. A completely different, more traquil vibe to Monaco in real life, it will be interesting to see how Maverick presents those opposing natures.
Monaco: A Unique Atmosphere
Earlier, I noted how ever-lasting construction work helps make Monaco what it is, with cranes filling the sky and the sound of heavy tools ringing through the streets. Well, that all boils down to Monaco being a naturally busy, bustling and loud place to be and that also stems from the amount of people condensed into such a small space.
Navigating the streets of Monaco is not just a commute, it is a quest. Battling the endless queues, traffic jams, aggressive mopeds and seemingly suicidal pedestrians takes a special breed. Thankfully, it seems Maverick Games is not quite going to those extremes of recreation, the gameplay footage so far presenting a happy medium between hustle and bustle and outright gridlock. Often, you see groups of cars crossing each other, but there is typically ways of avoiding being stuck at walking pace.
Traffic density looks refreshingly realistic in CLUTCH. Image credit: LPN05 on Youtube
Where I believe the game could go further in its traffic simulation is the type of car you see out and about on the road. Yes, a lot of the time you will come across interesting models with more cylinders than your common commuter but for the most part, Monaco is full of little compact econoboxes with a touch of spice. Think Smart, think Abarth, think A45 AMG - not lumbering classic saloons like the E39 5-Series and Renault 4 that seem to fill the game.
Elsewhere, to give the map a greater sense of life and to better match up with the Monaco I know, it is worth noting that if you want to find a parking space along the street, it is easy: you can't. Every kerb-side space, every parallel spot, every open air lot and every inch of spare tarmac will inevitably be used. Not only does this show just how busy the city can be, it also helps tighten streets. Based on the gameplay, some streets do seem to feature road-side parking with spaces taken up by cars and bikes, but realistically, every metre of road should get a car between the road and the pavement.
What do you make of Monaco and the open world in CLUTCH? Let us know in the comments or join the discussion in our CLUTCH forum!