For many years the game‑development landscape has been dominated by two heavyweight engines: Unity and Unreal. In 2025 those platforms were responsible for roughly seventy percent of all titles released on Steam, while the open‑source Godot engine has been gaining traction in recent years. Large publishers continue to rely on proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example—so the market has seemed firmly in the hands of the established players.
Yet three industry veterans—Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient—believe there is still room for a fresh approach. Their new venture, Immens, is built around an AI‑augmented engine that they argue can break the cycle of ever‑rising costs and ever‑longer development timelines. The founders’ résumés read like a who’s‑who of modern game tech: experience at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee explained that the timing feels right for a new engine because "the tools that existed a couple of years ago simply aren’t enough for today’s ambitions." According to Brussee, the secret sauce is AI‑supported programming that lets developers start from a clean slate without having to wrestle with the legacy constraints of older engines.
"With a lot of guidance and control, you can build something that delivers full functionality quickly," he said. Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, clarified that the AI they employ is not a generative chatbot that conjures assets from a prompt. Instead, it is an extensibility engine that can reason about large codebases and data sets, making it easier for small teams or solo creators to add custom features—such as a bespoke particle system—without rewriting core systems.
The motivation behind Immens is rooted in the harsh economic realities of modern game production. Brussee described the current climate as "rough," noting that development budgets keep inflating and the risk of failure is higher than ever.
"We need new ways of working that reduce cost, shrink team size, and accelerate timelines," he argued. De Jong, the chief product officer, echoed this sentiment, pointing out that the engine market has become overly standardized and consolidated. While that consolidation has provided a solid foundation, the industry now needs genuine innovation rather than more of the same.
One of the key criticisms De Jong has of existing engines is their monolithic nature. Developers are forced to adapt to proprietary file formats and rigid workflows. Immens aims to flip that script by offering an engine that molds itself to the developer’s needs.
"It has to be extremely flexible," he said. "You should be able to swap components, append new modules, and craft tools that match your exact workflow, shortcuts, and interface preferences." Valient warned that AI, while powerful, can quickly go off‑track if left unchecked.
To mitigate that, Immens is designed so that users retain full visibility and control over the AI’s actions. Every change is logged, repeatable, and auditable, ensuring that developers can trust the tool rather than being surprised by it.
He illustrated this with a hypothetical scenario: creating five characters with a specific trait that would previously have taken weeks can now be prototyped over a coffee break, used repeatedly, and discarded when no longer needed—dramatically cutting costs. Flexibility extends to how much AI a team chooses to employ. The engine does not impose a single workflow; instead, its architecture lets users decide where AI fits into their pipeline. "You can decide the degree of AI involvement, but we also have to make sure the AI understands the context correctly," De Jong added.
Interoperability is another cornerstone of Immens’ design philosophy. By relying on open, text‑based standards, the engine can communicate seamlessly with other tools such as Blender, Maya, or any generative‑art pipeline. "When files are plain text, any program can read them," Brussee explained. This openness contrasts with many proprietary engines that act as closed ecosystems, hindering collaboration across different software.
The broader conversation about AI in game development is polarized. Some commentators on LinkedIn hype the notion of "click‑to‑game" engines that could generate Grand Theft Auto‑scale experiences from a single prompt. Immens’ team acknowledges that such a future might be possible, but they stress that AI should be viewed as a tool, not a replacement for human creativity. Valient believes AI will make developers better, not obsolete, and that the industry must adopt it responsibly.
Economic concerns also swirl around the AI boom, with many fearing a bubble of over‑valued startups. Valient compared the situation to the dot‑com era, noting that while many companies will fail, the underlying technology persists. "AI isn’t going away, just like the internet didn’t disappear after the bubble burst," he said.
Immens is focused on building a solid engine first; AI simply accelerates their ability to dream bigger and iterate faster. Funding remains modest. Immens has secured its "first commitments" but has not disclosed amounts, describing the target as "reasonable". Brussee cautioned against excessive capital, noting that too much money can breed complacency.
The company remains a lean operation—just the three founders and a handful of helpers—by design. De Jong explained that building an engine is a complex, nuanced task that cannot be rushed by hiring a massive team. Instead, a small, focused group can make deliberate decisions and adapt quickly to the evolving market. Immens is currently developing a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow.
The team aimed to have the demo ready by year‑end but has already accelerated the timeline, delivering a working prototype two months ahead of schedule. While the exact business model is still under discussion, Brussee expressed admiration for Epic Games’ "we succeed when you succeed" licensing approach, though he admits it is too early to commit. Ultimately, the founders hope Immens will empower creators to push the boundaries of interactive art.
"We love games and want to see more risk‑taking, more creativity," Brussee concluded. "If our technology can help bring innovative experiences to life, that would be amazing."