For years, the game‑development landscape has been dominated by two heavyweight engines: Unity and Unreal. In 2025, roughly 70 % of titles released on Steam were built with one of those platforms. While open‑source alternatives like Godot have enjoyed a surge in popularity, many large studios still cling to proprietary solutions such as Capcom’s RE Engine, leaving the market largely consolidated under the two giants. Enter Immens, a fledgling venture founded by three industry veterans—Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient—who believe there is still room for a fresh, more adaptable engine.
Their résumés read like a who’s‑who of game‑tech: experience at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple. Together they aim to challenge the status quo and give developers a tool that leverages modern AI without sacrificing control. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee explained that the timing feels right for a new engine because “the possibilities that didn’t exist a couple of years ago are now within reach.” He argues that AI‑augmented programming can let creators start from a clean slate again, providing “guided yet flexible” pathways to full‑functionality much faster than traditional pipelines. Valient, Immens’s chief technology officer, is quick to clarify that their AI isn’t about magical prompts that conjure entire games.
Instead, the technology is woven into the engine’s architecture to make it highly extensible. “AI can reason over large codebases and data sets,” he says. “If we design the engine with that capability in mind, even a solo developer can add a custom particle system or a bespoke gameplay mechanic without wrestling with opaque scripting layers.” This approach, he believes, empowers teams to extend the engine swiftly, turning AI into a productivity catalyst rather than a black‑box.
The motivation behind Immens is also economic. Brussee paints a bleak picture of the current market: “Making games is getting more expensive, and the risk of failure is rising. We need new, efficient ways to produce high‑quality experiences with smaller budgets and leaner teams.” He sees AI‑driven workflows as a way to break the cycle of ever‑inflating development costs, enabling studios to ship faster while preserving creative ambition. De Jong, the chief product officer, points out that the engine space has become overly standardized and consolidated.
While that has given developers a solid foundation, it also means the industry is stuck in a “monolithic approach” where developers must adapt to proprietary file formats and rigid pipelines. He envisions an engine that flexes to the user’s needs: “You should be able to swap components, append new tools, and tailor the interface to match your workflow.
Imagine building a toolset that mirrors your personal shortcuts and project requirements—exactly the way you want to work.” Valient acknowledges AI’s double‑edged nature. The technology is powerful but can “go off the rails” if left unchecked.
To mitigate this, Immens is built to keep the user in the driver’s seat. Every AI action is logged, repeatable, and transparent, allowing developers to understand the history of changes and intervene when necessary. This level of control transforms speculative, time‑consuming tasks—like generating five uniquely‑traited characters—into rapid, coffee‑break‑sized iterations that can be discarded or refined on the fly. Flexibility is baked into the engine’s core.
De Jong stresses that Immens does not enforce a single workflow; instead, it offers a modular architecture where teams decide how much AI to incorporate and where. The goal is to provide a framework that can be customized without forcing a one‑size‑fits‑all methodology.
Interoperability is another pillar of the project. By embracing open standards and text‑based file formats, Immens aims to play nicely with existing tools such as Blender, Maya, or any generative‑AI pipeline. Brussee explains that when files are human‑readable, “the AI can parse them, manipulate them, and hand them back to the engine, creating a seamless bridge between disparate software.” This openness counters the typical isolation seen in many commercial engines, which often act as “weird outliers” that resist integration.
The broader AI debate in game development is heated. Some pundits on LinkedIn hype the notion of “click‑to‑game” experiences, suggesting that a single prompt could spawn a Grand Theft Auto‑scale world. Immens’s team tempers those expectations, viewing AI as a powerful tool rather than a miracle shortcut.
Valient believes AI will elevate the skill of every creator, saying, “The biggest games will still be made by talented teams, but AI will make everyone better.” Economic anxieties also linger, with many questioning whether AI‑focused startups are riding a bubble. Valient draws a parallel to the dot‑com era: the internet didn’t disappear, even though many early companies failed. “Good technology and solid products survive,” he asserts. Immens is focused on building a robust engine first; AI simply accelerates their vision.
Funding remains modest. Immens has secured its “first commitments” but has not disclosed amounts, describing the capital needed as “reasonable.” Brussee warns against over‑funding, noting that excess cash can breed complacency. The company intentionally remains lean—just the three founders plus a handful of helpers—to stay scrappy and make deliberate decisions.
Scaling an engine is a complex endeavor; you can’t simply throw a million developers at the problem. De Jong explains that a small, focused team can iterate, learn, and make strategic choices, especially during the narrow window of opportunity presented by AI’s rise.
Immens is currently targeting a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing flow, slated for release later this month. Their timeline has already outpaced initial expectations, with development moving twice as fast as projected.
When asked about the business model, Brussee mentions admiration for Epic’s “we succeed when you succeed” philosophy but admits it’s too early to cement a pricing strategy. Ultimately, the founders hope Immens will empower creators to push the medium forward, fostering more risk‑taking, artistic expression, and innovation. As Brussee puts it, “We love games, we love the art form, and we want to see more creativity built on technology like this.
That would be amazing."