UK indies Playground ‘co-developing next Forza’

British start-up studio Playground Games has been selected by Microsoft to co-develop the next iteration of the lucrative Forza series, according to widespread reports published ahead of an official announcement.

It is unclear how if the Leamington Spa studio is the lead developer of the project, reported to be named ‘Forza Horizon’.

Each edition of the racing game series has hitherto been developed at Microsoft Studios subsidiary Turn 10, a triple-A outfit based in Washington state that frequently outsources work to other developers.

Develop understands that Playground is also working on a second high-profile project.

Microsoft is expected to announce Forza Horizon this week, along with another edition of the Fable series, as the industry gathers in San Francisco for the Game Developers Conference.

Playground was formed in 2009 by former Codemasters executives Trevor Williams and Nick Wheelwright.

The midlands studio has been scaling up its workforce for two years, partly through a dedicated job vacancy campaign in Develop.