For years, Unity and Unreal have reigned supreme in the game‑development world, accounting for roughly seventy percent of Steam releases in 2025. While Godot has enjoyed a surge in popularity and some studios cling to proprietary tools—Capcom’s RE Engine, for example—the duopoly of Unity and Unreal still dominates the market.
Enter Immersive, a startup founded by three industry veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient. Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of game‑tech history, spanning Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple. The trio believes there is still room for a fresh engine and, more importantly, for a better way to build games. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee argued that the timing is now right for a new engine that simply didn’t exist a few years ago.
"With AI‑assisted programming you can start building from scratch again," he said. "With the right guidance and control, you can deliver full‑featured experiences much faster." Valient, Immersive’s chief technology officer, clarified that their use of AI is not the flashy, prompt‑to‑image style that dominates headlines. Instead, the AI is woven into the engine’s architecture to make it highly extensible.
"AI can reason over large codebases and data sets. If we design the engine with that capability in mind, even solo developers can extend it beyond simple scripting.
Want a custom particle system? You can add it directly," he explained. This approach aims to let creators harness AI to accelerate extensions rather than replace the creative process.
The motivation behind the project is the increasingly hostile economics of game development. Brussee described the current climate as "rough." Development costs keep climbing, making it harder for small teams to break even.
"We need new, more efficient ways of working that lower budgets and reduce risk for studios," he said. The goal is to enable high‑quality games to be built by fewer people in less time, thereby protecting livelihoods.
De Jong, the chief product officer, pointed out that the engine market has become overly standardized and consolidated. While that stability provides a solid base, it also stifles innovation. "The industry faces many challenges, and repeating the same old processes won’t solve them. We need genuine innovation, not just more of the same," he asserted.
One criticism of existing engines is their monolithic nature: developers must adapt to proprietary file formats and rigid workflows. De Jong envisions an engine that bends to the developer’s needs. "It must be flexible—allowing you to swap components, append new tools, and craft interfaces that match your personal workflow. If I need a tool with specific shortcuts and UI elements for my team, I can build it directly into the engine," he said.
Valient also warned that AI, while powerful, can misbehave if left unchecked. Immersive therefore emphasizes transparency and control. "When you use our engine, you always know what it’s doing and why.
The history of actions is recorded, making the process repeatable and safe," he noted. This visibility lets developers create bespoke tools for niche tasks—like generating five characters with a particular trait—in minutes rather than weeks, dramatically cutting costs. Flexibility is baked into Immersive’s design philosophy.
De Jong stressed that the engine does not impose a single workflow. "You decide how much AI to involve and where.
Our architecture simply provides the scaffolding for you to choose your own path," he said, adding that the AI must understand the developer’s intent correctly. Interoperability is another cornerstone. By relying on open, text‑based standards, Immersive ensures that files can be read and manipulated by any tool. "If a file is plain text, any program can parse it.
That means Blender, Maya, or any generative tool can plug straight into the engine," Brussee explained. This openness counters the tendency of many engines to become closed ecosystems that hinder cross‑tool collaboration.
The AI debate in game development is heated. Some commentators on LinkedIn hype the idea of “click‑to‑game” experiences, suggesting entire open‑world titles could be summoned with a single prompt. Immersive acknowledges such visions but treats AI as a powerful assistant rather than a replacement.
"AI will make everyone better, but the games will still be crafted by people," Valient said. He warned against the negative connotations that arise when disruptive tech shakes established practices.
Economic anxieties also swirl around AI, with many fearing a speculative bubble. Valient compared the situation to the dot‑com era: the internet didn’t disappear, but many over‑hyped companies fell away.
"We’re focused on building a solid engine. AI helps us iterate faster and think bigger, but whether the market is a bubble is unknown. History shows that good technology survives," he reflected.
Funding remains modest. Immersive has secured its "first commitments" but has not disclosed amounts, describing the target as "reasonable." Brussee cautioned against excess capital, noting that too much money can breed complacency. The team remains lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—by design. "Building an engine is complex, but you can’t throw a million engineers at it and expect miracles.
A small, focused team makes deliberate decisions," De Jong explained. At the same time, they recognize a narrow window of opportunity as AI reshapes the industry, and they aim to balance resources to hit that sweet spot.
The startup is currently developing a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow, slated for release later this month. Brussee noted that the project, which began in April, is already moving twice as fast as originally projected, making timeline predictions challenging. Regarding the business model, Immersive admires Epic Games’ philosophy of succeeding when developers succeed, but it remains too early to commit to a specific revenue structure. Ultimately, Brussee hopes the engine will empower creators to push the medium forward.
"We love games and want to see more risk‑taking, more creativity. If our technology enables that, it would be amazing," he concluded.