For years, Unity and Unreal have been the dominant forces behind the majority of games released on platforms like Steam, accounting for roughly 70% of titles in 2025. While open‑source alternatives such as Godot have enjoyed notable growth, most large studios still lean on proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example. In this landscape, the market for game engines appears largely locked in place.
Enter Immens, a fledgling company founded by three industry veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient. Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of modern game development, featuring stints at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple.
Together they argue that the status quo still leaves room for a fresh engine that can address the pain points that have begun to surface across the ecosystem. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee noted that the timing feels right for a new engine because “the tools that existed a couple of years ago simply don’t meet today’s needs.” He believes AI‑enhanced programming can restore the ability to build from the ground up without the massive overhead that traditionally accompanies engine development.
“With the right guidance and control, you can assemble a fully‑functional system quickly,” he explained. Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, is quick to clarify that the AI they are integrating is not the kind of generative, prompt‑driven magic that dominates headlines. Instead, the AI is embedded in the engine’s architecture to make it highly extensible.
“AI can reason over large codebases and data sets,” he said. “If we design the engine with that capability in mind, even a solo developer can add a custom particle system or a bespoke rendering pipeline without wrestling with opaque scripting layers.” This approach aims to let creators extend the engine itself rather than merely script within a fixed framework. The motivation behind Immens is rooted in the current economic climate of game development.
Brussee describes the market as “rough,” pointing out that production costs are spiralling upward, making it harder for small teams to survive. “We need new ways of working that lower costs, shrink team sizes, and accelerate timelines,” he argued. The goal is to break the cycle where studios risk their entire livelihood on projects that require ever‑larger budgets. De Jong, the chief product officer, adds that the engine space has become overly standardized and consolidated.
While this has given developers a solid foundation, it also stifles innovation. “The industry is facing a set of challenges that cannot be solved by simply iterating on existing tools,” he said.
“We need a paradigm shift, not another incremental update.” One of the core criticisms De Jong has of current engines is their monolithic nature. Developers must adapt to proprietary file formats and rigid pipelines, which can be a barrier to creativity. With AI, Immens envisions an engine that molds itself around the developer’s workflow. “Flexibility is key,” he emphasized.
“You should be able to swap modules, append new features, and build custom tools that match your exact workflow—down to the shortcuts, UI layout, and feature set you need for your project.” Valient acknowledges that AI, while powerful, can be unpredictable if left unchecked. To mitigate this, Immens is built to keep the user in the driver’s seat.
“You always know what the engine is doing, you can trace its history, and you can reproduce results reliably,” he noted. This transparency is intended to make AI‑generated tools safe and repeatable, turning what could be a black‑box into a collaborative partner.
The flexibility of Immens extends to its openness. The team plans to rely on open standards and text‑based file formats, allowing seamless interoperability with popular tools such as Blender, Maya, and other generative pipelines. “When files are human‑readable, any AI can parse them, and any software can consume them,” Brussee said.
This contrasts with many existing engines that act as closed ecosystems, making it difficult to integrate third‑party assets or workflows. The broader conversation about AI in game development is often polarized.
Some commentators on platforms like LinkedIn hype the idea of “click‑to‑game” engines that could produce Grand Theft Auto‑scale experiences from a single prompt. Immens’ founders see such visions as aspirational but ultimately view AI as a tool rather than a replacement for human creativity. “AI will make everyone better, not replace them,” Valient asserted. “It’s a tool that can be misused, but it also has the potential to democratize high‑quality production.” Economic anxieties also loom over the AI boom.
Critics warn of a bubble, comparing today’s hype to the dot‑com era. Valient counters that while valuations may be inflated, the underlying technology is not disappearing. “The internet didn’t vanish after the dot‑com crash; the successful companies survived and thrived,” he said. Immens aims to be one of those lasting successes by focusing on building a solid engine first, with AI serving as an accelerator rather than the core product.
Funding for Immens remains modest. The company has secured “first commitments” but has not disclosed exact figures, describing the amount as “reasonable.” Brussee warns against over‑funding, noting that excess capital can breed complacency. “Startups need to stay scrappy,” he laughed.
The team currently consists of the three founders plus a handful of helpers, a deliberate choice to keep development agile. Balancing team size with ambition is a constant challenge.
De Jong explains that building an engine is a complex undertaking that cannot be solved by simply hiring a large workforce. “You need a focused group that can make thoughtful decisions and iterate quickly,” he said. At the same time, the window for capitalizing on AI‑driven innovation is limited, so the founders are trying to hit that sweet spot between resources and speed.
Immens is already working on a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow. The team aims to release this demo within the month, a timeline that has already outpaced their original projection of completing it by year‑end. “We’re moving twice as fast as we thought we would,” Brussee reported, highlighting the potential productivity gains that AI can unlock.
The business model is still taking shape. While Immens admires Epic Games’ “we succeed when you succeed” licensing approach, they admit it’s too early to commit to a specific revenue structure. The focus remains on delivering a compelling engine that developers want to adopt.
Ultimately, the founders hope Immens will enable a new wave of creative risk‑taking in games. “We love games and want to see more daring, artistic expressions,” Brussee concluded. “If our technology can lower barriers and inspire innovation, that would be amazing for the whole industry."