For many years, Unity and Unreal have been the go‑to platforms for game creation, accounting for roughly 70% of Steam releases in 2025. While Godot has made notable strides recently and some large studios continue to rely on proprietary tools—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example—the market has largely been dominated by the two giants. Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient, the trio behind Immersive (Immens), believe there is still space for a fresh engine and for meaningful improvement. Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of the industry: experience at Epic Games (the makers of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, Apple, and more.
Together they aim to challenge the status quo. In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee pointed out that “the moment is right” to craft an engine that simply didn’t exist a few years ago.
He added that AI‑assisted programming now makes it possible to start building from a clean slate again. With the right guidance and control, developers can rapidly assemble a fully functional system.
Valient, Immens’s chief technology officer, clarifies that the AI they employ is not the typical “prompt‑to‑output” gimmick. Instead, the AI is woven into the engine’s architecture to make it highly extensible. "AI can analyse massive codebases and data sets effectively," he explains.
"If we design the core with that capability in mind, even solo developers or tiny teams can extend the engine beyond simple scripting. Want a custom particle system? You can plug it in directly. That’s how we’re leveraging AI—to let creators extend functionality faster." The motivation behind this AI‑powered engine stems from the current climate of the games market, which Brussee describes as "rough." Development costs are spiralling, making it increasingly difficult for small studios to survive.
He asks whether new workflows could break this cycle, delivering games with fewer people, tighter budgets, and shorter timelines, thereby reducing financial risk for creators and studios alike. De Jong, Immens’s chief product officer, notes that the engine landscape has become overly standardized and consolidated. While this has provided a solid foundation, the industry now needs fresh innovation rather than more of the same. "We’re at a point where the challenges facing developers can’t be solved by merely repeating past practices," he says.
"We need a different approach." One of De Jong’s criticisms of existing engines is their monolithic nature. Developers must conform to proprietary file formats and workflows, limiting flexibility.
With AI, however, Immens aims to deliver an engine that adapts to the user’s needs. "It must be extremely flexible," he asserts. "You should be able to swap components, add new ones, modify existing tools, and even build custom interfaces that match your personal workflow." Valient acknowledges AI’s power but also its volatility.
"It’s incredibly capable, but it can go off the rails quickly if you’re not vigilant," he warns. Immens is being built so that users retain full control and visibility over the engine’s actions, including a clear history of changes to ensure repeatability. This transparency enables developers to create bespoke tools for specific problems—like generating five characters with a particular trait—in a fraction of the time traditionally required. What once took weeks can now be prototyped over a coffee break, dramatically lowering costs.
Flexibility is a core tenet of Immens. The platform does not enforce a single workflow; instead, it provides a framework that lets developers decide how much AI to incorporate and where.
De Jong emphasizes that the architecture must support varied approaches while ensuring the AI interprets instructions accurately. Interoperability is another focus. Immens will rely on open standards, making it easy to exchange data with other tools.
"When files are text‑based, any program can read them," Brussee explains. "Our AI can parse these files and act on them. Open standards are emerging across the industry, and we want to embrace them so that tools like Blender, Maya, or generative pipelines can plug directly into the engine without cumbersome adapters." There is a vocal backlash against AI in game development, often fueled by sensational claims that a simple prompt could generate a Grand Theft Auto‑level experience.
While Immens’s team concedes that "click‑to‑game" engines might eventually appear, they view AI strictly as a tool that enhances human creativity rather than replaces it. Valient says, "Big games and everything in between will be made better because AI makes everyone more capable." De Jong adds a responsible perspective: AI, like any technology, can be misused, but it also offers unprecedented productivity. The industry must figure out how to wield it ethically.
Beyond creative concerns, there are economic anxieties about an AI bubble. Critics argue that inflated valuations could burst, leaving many startups dead.
Valient counters that AI is not a passing fad; it’s akin to the internet after the dot‑com bubble—many companies will fail, but the underlying technology will endure. "We’re focused on building a solid engine; AI simply accelerates our development and lets us dream bigger," he says.
Immens has not disclosed specific funding numbers yet, though it has secured initial commitments. The founders prefer modest capital to avoid the complacency that can accompany excess cash.
Brussee jokes that too much money can make a startup lazy, whereas scarcity encourages scrappiness. The team remains lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers.
This intentional size allows for careful decision‑making and rapid iteration without the overhead of a massive staff. De Jong explains the balance: a game engine is complex and cannot be built by throwing a million developers at it, yet timing is crucial to capture the current wave of AI‑driven change. Currently, Immens is developing a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow, slated for release this month.
Brussee notes that the project, which began in April, is already moving twice as fast as originally projected, making timeline predictions difficult. The business model is still under consideration.
While Immens appreciates Epic Games’ philosophy of succeeding when its users succeed, it’s too early to commit to a specific revenue structure. Ultimately, Brussee hopes Immens will empower creators to push the medium forward. "We love games and the complex artistic expression they represent. We want more creativity, more risk‑taking, and more innovation built on technology like ours.
That would be amazing," he concludes.