For more than a decade, Unity and Unreal have been the de facto workhorses of video‑game development, accounting for roughly seventy percent of all titles released on Steam in 2025. While open‑source alternatives like Godot have begun to attract attention and a handful of large publishers still cling to proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example—the market has largely been a duopoly.
Into this entrenched landscape step three seasoned industry veterans, Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient, who have banded together to launch Immens, a startup intent on delivering a new, AI‑enhanced game engine. The trio’s résumés read like a who‑is‑who of modern game development. Brussee helped build the original Quake engine and later co‑founded the mobile hit *Angry Birds*; De Jong was a lead programmer at Guerrilla Games and contributed to the acclaimed *Horizon* series; Valient has spent time at Epic Games, Apple, and the innovative studio Boss Key.
Their combined experience gives them a unique perspective on why the status quo feels increasingly restrictive. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee explained that the timing feels right for a fresh engine because “the tools that existed a couple of years ago simply aren’t enough for today’s ambitions.” He believes AI‑assisted programming can restore the ability to start projects from a clean slate, providing “full‑functionality quickly while keeping a high degree of guidance and control.” Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, is quick to clarify that the AI they envision is not the flashy, prompt‑to‑image style that dominates headlines. Instead, the AI is woven into the engine’s architecture to make the codebase highly extensible. “If we design the engine with AI reasoning in mind, even a solo developer can plug in a custom particle system or a novel physics module without rewriting large sections of core code,” he said.
This approach aims to shift the paradigm from a monolithic engine that forces developers to fit their workflow into its constraints, to a modular platform that adapts to the creator’s needs. The motivation behind Immens is rooted in the current economic climate of game development. Brussee describes the environment as “rough,” noting that production budgets keep inflating while the odds of commercial success shrink. “We need new ways of working that reduce cost, shrink team size, and accelerate timelines,” he argued.
The goal is to give smaller studios a viable path to compete without risking everything on a single, massive project. De Jong, the chief product officer, observes that the engine market has entered a phase of “standardisation and consolidation.” While this has produced stable foundations, it also stifles innovation. “The industry faces a series of challenges, and simply repeating the old formulas won’t cut it,” he warned.
He points to the “monolithic approach” of existing engines—where developers must conform to proprietary file formats and rigid pipelines—as a major pain point. With AI‑driven adaptability, Immens aims to let users reshape the engine on the fly, creating bespoke tools, shortcuts, and interfaces that match their personal workflows. Valient acknowledges AI’s double‑edged nature. The technology is “really powerful,” yet it can “go off the rails quickly if you don’t pay attention.” To mitigate this, Immens is built to keep the user in the driver’s seat, offering full transparency over what the AI does, a complete history of changes, and repeatable processes.
This level of control, he argues, turns AI from a mysterious black box into a reliable collaborator. For example, a designer who needs five characters with a specific trait could previously spend weeks scripting and iterating; with Immens, they could generate a prototype over a coffee break, test it, and discard the temporary tool once the job is done, dramatically lowering cost. Flexibility is baked into the engine’s core. De Jong emphasizes that Immens does not impose a single workflow; developers decide how much AI to employ and where.
The architecture is deliberately open, supporting open standards and text‑based file formats that any tool can read. “If you’re using Blender, Maya, or any generative asset pipeline, you can plug it in because everything speaks the same language,” Brussee explained. This interoperability contrasts sharply with many current engines, which often act as closed ecosystems that hinder cross‑tool collaboration. The conversation around AI in game development is polarized.
Some commentators on LinkedIn sensationalize the idea that a single prompt could spawn a Grand Theft Auto‑scale world, fueling fear of a “click‑to‑game” future. Immens’ team tempers these extremes, positioning AI as a powerful assistant rather than a replacement for human creativity. Valient believes that AI will elevate the entire industry, making “big games and everything in between better because AI makes everybody better.” De Jong adds that, like any technology, AI can be misused, but the responsibility lies with developers to apply it ethically.
Economic anxieties also loom large. Critics warn that AI‑centric startups may be riding a speculative bubble, with inflated valuations detached from real revenue. Valient draws a parallel to the dot‑com bubble, noting that while many companies vanished, the underlying internet technology persisted and flourished. “We’re focused on building a solid engine; AI simply accelerates our ability to dream bigger and ship faster,” he said.
Whether the market is in a bubble remains uncertain, but Immens appears intent on weathering any downturn by concentrating on product quality rather than hype. Funding for Immens is still in its early stages. The founders have secured “first commitments” but have not disclosed exact figures, describing the amount as “reasonable.” Brussee cautions against over‑capitalization, noting that excess cash can breed complacency. “Startups need to stay scrappy,” he laughed.
The company remains lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—by design. De Jong explains that building an engine is a complex, iterative endeavor that does not benefit from a massive headcount. “You need a small, focused team to make deliberate decisions and iterate quickly,” he said, while also acknowledging the need to balance resources to seize the narrow window of opportunity presented by AI’s rise.
Immens is currently racing toward a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow. The team aimed to have the demo ready by year‑end, but they are already delivering it months ahead of schedule, a testament to the speed gains they claim AI can provide. While the exact business model is still under discussion, Brussee admires Epic Games’ “we succeed when you succeed” licensing philosophy but admits it’s too early to commit to a specific approach.
Ultimately, the founders hope Immens will catalyze a new wave of creativity and risk‑taking in games. “We love games as an art form and want to see more daring, innovative experiences,” Brussee concluded. “If our technology can help studios push boundaries and bring fresh ideas to life, that would be amazing.”