For years, Unity and Unreal have been the dominant forces in game development, powering roughly 70% of the titles that appeared on Steam in 2025. While open‑source alternatives like Godot have gained traction and some studios cling to proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a notable example—the market has largely been a duopoly. Into this landscape step three seasoned industry veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient, the founders of Immers. Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of game‑making powerhouses, featuring stints at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple.
Together they believe there is still room for a fresh engine, one that addresses the pain points that have begun to gnaw at developers. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee argued that the timing is right for a new platform, noting that "the opportunity didn’t exist a couple of years ago." He sees AI‑assisted programming as a catalyst that can bring the concept of building a game engine from the ground up back into reality. "With the right guidance and control, you can assemble a fully‑functional system quickly," he explained.
Valient, Immers’ chief technology officer, clarified that the AI they are integrating is not the kind of generative prompt‑based wizardry that dominates headlines. Instead, the AI is baked into 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 gameplay mechanic without being limited to a handful of scripting hooks.
The AI becomes a speed‑up for extension, not a replacement for creative work." The motivation behind Immers is rooted in the current economic climate of game development. Brussee described the environment as "rough," emphasizing that production costs are spiralling and the risk of failure is mounting. "We need new workflows that lower expenses, let smaller teams deliver faster, and protect studios from catastrophic financial loss," he warned.
De Jong, the chief product officer, echoed this sentiment, pointing out that the engine market has become overly standardized and consolidated. While that consolidation provides a stable foundation, it also stifles innovation.
"The industry needs a breakthrough, not more of the same," he asserted. One of De Jong’s chief criticisms of existing engines is their monolithic nature.
Developers often have to bend their projects to fit proprietary file formats and rigid pipelines. Immers aims to flip that script by delivering an engine that adapts to the developer’s needs, not the other way around.
"Flexibility is key," he said. "You should be able to swap components, append new ones, and craft tools that match your personal workflow—down to the exact shortcuts, UI layout, and feature set you require." Valient acknowledges that AI, while powerful, can misbehave if left unchecked.
To mitigate this, Immers is being built with transparency and control at its core. Users will always know what the AI is doing, can review its decision history, and can reproduce results reliably. This level of oversight turns the AI into a dependable assistant rather than an unpredictable black box.
He illustrated the potential impact with a simple example: generating five uniquely‑behaved characters that previously might have taken weeks can now be prototyped over a coffee break, used for a handful of iterations, and discarded without breaking the budget. The team stresses that Immers does not impose a single workflow.
Developers can decide how much AI to employ and where it fits into their pipeline. The engine’s architecture is deliberately modular, allowing studios to plug in external tools—whether it’s Blender, Maya, or other generative software—thanks to open, text‑based standards. "When files are human‑readable, any tool can interact with them," Brussee noted.
"That openness lets AI parse and manipulate assets seamlessly, fostering smarter interfaces across the entire development stack." There is a vocal backlash against AI in game creation, often fueled by sensational claims that a single prompt could conjure a Grand Theft Auto‑scale experience. Immers’ founders see such "click‑to‑game" visions as a distant possibility, but they stress that AI should be viewed as a tool that amplifies human creativity rather than replaces it.
"AI is making everyone better," Valient said. "The negative press stems from the scale of disruption, not from the technology itself." Economic concerns also swirl around AI, with many fearing a speculative bubble. Valient draws a parallel to the dot‑com era, arguing that while some companies will fall, the underlying technology endures.
"AI isn’t disappearing; it’s becoming the infrastructure of the next generation of software," he argued. Immers is focused on building a solid engine first, using AI to accelerate development and enable bigger dreams. Funding remains modest.
Immers has secured its "first commitments" but has not disclosed amounts, describing the capital raise as "reasonable." Brussee warned against over‑funding, noting that excess cash can breed complacency. The company remains lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—by design. De Jong explained that a small, focused team is essential for making thoughtful architectural decisions, yet they must also time their growth to capture the market window created by AI’s rise. Currently, Immers is racing toward a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow, slated for release later this month.
The timeline has already outpaced their original projection of an end‑of‑year launch, indicating the speed gains they tout. As for monetization, Brussee admires Epic’s "we succeed when you succeed" model but admits it’s too early to commit to a specific approach.
Ultimately, the founders hope Immers will empower creators to push the boundaries of interactive art. "We love games and want to see more risk‑taking and creativity," Brussee concluded. "If our technology can help bring more innovative experiences to life, that would be amazing."