For many years, Unity and Unreal have been the de‑facto platforms for creating video games, accounting for roughly seventy percent of the titles launched on Steam in 2025. While open‑source alternatives like Godot have gained traction and some publishers continue to rely on proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a notable example—the duopoly of Unity and Unreal still dominates the market. Enter Immersive Technologies, better known as Immens, a startup founded by three seasoned veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient. Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of the industry, with stints at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and Apple.
Together they argue that the current engine landscape is ripe for disruption and that a new, AI‑enhanced tool can address long‑standing pain points. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee explained that the timing feels right for a fresh engine because “the possibilities that didn’t exist a few years ago are now within reach.” He believes that AI‑assisted programming can bring developers back to the era of building systems from the ground up, but with far more guidance and speed.
“When you combine strong direction with AI, you can get full‑featured functionality very quickly,” he said. Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, is careful to differentiate their approach from the hype‑driven “prompt‑to‑content” narrative that dominates much of the AI conversation. For Immens, AI is a means of making the engine itself more extensible.
He notes that AI can analyse massive codebases and data sets, allowing the underlying architecture to be designed so that even solo creators or tiny teams can plug in custom features without wrestling with rigid scripting layers. “If a developer wants a bespoke particle system, they can add it directly into the engine,” Valient explained. “AI helps them do that faster and more reliably.” The motivation behind this ambitious project is the increasingly hostile economics of game development. Brussee described the current climate as “rough,” pointing out that production budgets are ballooning and the risk of failure is higher than ever.
He asked whether new workflows could break the cycle of ever‑rising costs, enabling smaller studios to deliver high‑quality experiences without jeopardising their financial stability. De Jong, Immens’ chief product officer, echoed this sentiment, noting that the engine market has become overly standardized and consolidated. While standardisation has provided a solid foundation, he argues that the industry now needs genuine innovation rather than incremental tweaks. He criticises the “monolithic approach” of existing engines, where developers must conform to proprietary file formats and toolchains.
With AI, De Jong envisions an engine that adapts to the user, allowing developers to swap, append, or modify components to suit their specific pipelines. “I can build tools that match my personal workflow—exact shortcuts, interfaces, and features—so my team can work exactly the way we need to,” he said. Valient acknowledges that AI is powerful but also volatile. He stresses that Immens will give users full visibility into what the AI is doing, preserving repeatability and control.
This transparency, he argues, lets developers create disposable, highly focused tools for tasks that would previously have taken weeks. Imagine generating five unique characters with a particular trait over a coffee break, then discarding the temporary workflow once the job is done.
Such rapid prototyping, he claims, could dramatically lower development costs. Flexibility is baked into Immens from the ground up. De Jong insists that the engine will not force a single workflow on its users.
Instead, the architecture will let developers decide how much AI to incorporate and where. The system will also rely on open standards, making it easy to exchange data with popular tools like Blender, Maya, or other generative pipelines. Brussee highlighted that text‑based file formats are universally readable, enabling the AI to manipulate assets directly and fostering smoother interoperability across the ecosystem. The broader conversation about AI in game creation is polarised.
Some commentators on platforms like LinkedIn warn that AI could enable “click‑to‑game” experiences where a simple prompt yields a Grand Theft Auto‑style world. Immens’ team sees AI more as an empowering assistant than a replacement for human creativity.
Valient believes that AI will elevate the skill of every developer, making large‑scale projects more accessible while preserving artistic intent. Economic concerns also surface, particularly the fear that AI‑centric startups are caught in a speculative bubble. Valient draws a parallel with the dot‑com era, noting that while many companies vanished, the underlying internet persisted and flourished. He argues that Immens is focused on building a genuinely useful engine; AI merely accelerates the process and expands the creative horizon.
Whether the market is overheated remains unknown, but the founders are confident that a solid product will survive any downturn. Funding for Immens is still in its early stages. The founders have secured “first commitments” but have not disclosed amounts, describing the target as “reasonable.” Brussee warned against excessive capital, suggesting that too much money can breed complacency and reduce the scrappy mindset essential for a startup. The team remains deliberately lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—so they can iterate quickly and make thoughtful decisions without the bureaucracy of a large organisation.
Immens is currently developing a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow. The goal is to release this demo within the month, a timeline that has already outpaced the founders’ original expectations. Brussee noted that what was initially projected to take until year‑end is now on track for a much earlier launch, underscoring the speed gains AI can deliver.
Regarding the business model, Immens admires Epic Games’ “we succeed when you succeed” licensing approach but admits it is too early to commit to a specific strategy. Ultimately, the founders hope their engine will inspire more daring, artistic games and encourage risk‑taking in an industry that often plays it safe.
In summary, Immens aims to combine the expertise of three industry veterans with AI‑driven flexibility, open standards, and a developer‑first philosophy. By doing so, they hope to lower barriers, shorten development cycles, and inject fresh creativity into a market that has grown increasingly cost‑intensive and homogenised.
If successful, their engine could become a catalyst for the next wave of innovative, indie‑powered experiences that push the boundaries of what games can be.