For many years, Unity and Unreal have been the de‑facto platforms for game creation, accounting for roughly seventy percent of the titles launched on Steam in 2025. While Godot has made notable strides recently and some large studios cling to proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example—the market has largely been dominated by those two giants. Enter Immens, a startup founded by three seasoned veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient.
Their résumés read like a who‑is‑who of the industry, with experience at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple. Together they argue that there is still space for a fresh engine, one that learns from the shortcomings of the current landscape and leverages modern AI techniques to empower developers of any size. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee explained that the timing feels right: "A few years ago this kind of engine simply didn’t exist.
With AI‑assisted programming we can start building from scratch again, under tight guidance, and get full‑featured tools up and running quickly." He sees AI not as a magic wand that conjures assets from a prompt, but as a catalyst for a more extensible codebase. Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, echoed that sentiment. He clarified that their AI isn’t about generating content on demand, but about constructing an engine that can be easily extended.
"AI can reason over large codebases and data sets. If we design the architecture with that capability in mind, even a solo developer can plug in a custom particle system or a bespoke gameplay mechanic without wrestling with opaque scripting layers. The goal is to let creators use AI to accelerate extensions, not replace the creative process." The motivation behind Immens is rooted in the harsh economic reality of modern game development.
Brussee described the market as "rough" and warned that production costs keep climbing, making it harder for small studios to survive. "We need new ways of working that cut costs, shrink team sizes, and speed up delivery, so developers aren’t gambling their livelihoods on a single title," he said. De Jong, the chief product officer, highlighted a broader industry trend: a wave of standardisation and consolidation that, while providing a stable foundation, also stifles innovation.
"We’re at a point where the challenges facing developers require fresh ideas, not just more of the same. Innovation, not further standardisation, is what the market needs now." One of the pain points he identified in existing engines is their monolithic nature. Developers are forced to adapt to rigid pipelines, proprietary file formats, and limited tooling. With AI, Immens aims to flip that script, offering an engine that molds itself to the developer’s workflow.
"Flexibility is key," De Jong explained. "You should be able to swap components, add new ones, and build tools that match your personal shortcuts, UI preferences, and project‑specific needs. The engine should be a canvas, not a cage." Valient acknowledged that AI is a double‑edged sword.
While it is "really powerful," it can also veer off course if left unchecked. Immens therefore builds transparency into the system: users can see exactly what the AI is doing, review its history, and ensure repeatable results. This level of control, he argues, turns AI from a mysterious black box into a reliable assistant. He illustrated the impact with a concrete example: creating five characters with a unique trait used to require weeks of planning and manual work.
With AI‑driven tooling, a developer could sketch the idea over coffee, generate the assets, iterate, and discard the temporary tool after use—all at a fraction of the previous cost. This rapid prototyping capability, he believes, will democratise ambitious game concepts for smaller teams. Immens’ architecture deliberately avoids imposing a single workflow.
De Jong stressed that developers decide how much AI to employ and where to place it within their pipeline. The underlying framework is designed to be open and interoperable, embracing text‑based file standards that any tool can read.
"If you’re using Blender, Maya, or any generative system, you can plug it straight into Immens because everything speaks the same open language," Brussee said. This openness contrasts with many engines that act as isolated ecosystems, hindering seamless integration. The conversation around AI in game development is often polarised.
Some commentators on LinkedIn hype the notion of "click‑to‑game" experiences, suggesting that a single prompt could spawn a GTA‑level world. Immens’ team cautions against such hyperbole. While they recognise that AI could eventually enable ultra‑fast prototyping, they view the technology as a tool—not a replacement for human creativity.
"AI makes everyone better, but the art still comes from people," Valient affirmed. Economic concerns also linger. Critics warn of an AI bubble with inflated valuations. Valient draws a parallel to the dot‑com era, noting that while many companies vanished, the underlying internet persisted and grew stronger.
"We’re building a solid engine first; AI simply accelerates our development and expands our imagination. Whether the market is in a bubble is uncertain, but technology rarely disappears outright," he said.
Funding remains modest. Immens has secured its "first commitments" but has not disclosed amounts, describing them as "reasonable". Brussee warned that excessive capital can breed complacency: "Startups that get too much money often become lazy.
Scrappiness drives innovation." The company remains a lean operation—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—by design. Balancing team size with ambition is a delicate act.
De Jong explained that building an engine is a complex, long‑term endeavour; flooding it with hundreds of engineers would not guarantee success. Instead, a small, focused group can make deliberate decisions, iterate quickly, and capture the emerging market window created by AI’s rise. Immens is currently racing toward a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow. The prototype, slated for release this month, aims to demonstrate how developers can modify assets and logic in real time using AI suggestions.
Brussee noted that the team originally expected to reach this milestone by year‑end, yet they are already two‑fold ahead of schedule, underscoring the speed gains AI can provide. Regarding monetisation, Immens admires Epic’s "we succeed when you succeed" licensing model but admits it is too early to commit to a specific approach. Ultimately, the founders hope their engine will empower creators to push the medium forward, encouraging risk‑taking and artistic expression. "We love games and want to see more daring, innovative titles.
If our technology can help bring those visions to life, that would be amazing," Brussee concluded.