For many years, Unity and Unreal have been the dominant forces in game development, accounting for roughly 70% of the titles released on Steam in 2025. While open‑source alternatives like Godot have gained traction, most major studios still rely on proprietary solutions—Capcom’s RE Engine being a prime example—leaving the engine market largely under the control of the two giants.
Enter Immens, a startup founded by three seasoned industry veterans: Arjan Brussee, Sjoerd De Jong, and Michal Valient. Their résumés read like a who's‑who of game‑making powerhouses, with experience at Epic Games (the creators of Unreal), Guerrilla Games, Boss Key, and even Apple. The trio believes there is still room for a fresh engine, one that can address the shortcomings of the current landscape and offer a more adaptable, cost‑effective toolset. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Brussee argued that the timing is right for a new platform.
"A few years ago the idea of building an engine from scratch with AI assistance would have sounded impossible. Today, AI‑augmented programming lets us start from a clean slate and get functional features up quickly," he explained. He emphasized that the goal isn’t to replace developers with magic prompts, but to give them a framework that can be extended efficiently. Valient, Immens’ chief technology officer, clarified that the AI embedded in their engine is not the same as the generative models that create art or dialogue on demand.
"Our AI is designed to make the codebase highly extensible," he said. "Because AI can parse large amounts of data and understand code structures, we can build an engine that smaller teams or solo creators can customize without being confined to a limited scripting layer. If a developer wants a bespoke particle system, they can add it directly into the engine rather than fighting against a monolithic architecture." The motivation behind Immens is rooted in the current economic pressures facing developers. Brussee described the market as "rough," noting that production costs continue to rise, making it increasingly difficult for studios to break even.
"We need new workflows that lower budgets and shrink team sizes without sacrificing quality," he argued. By leveraging AI to automate repetitive tasks and streamline iteration, Immens hopes to cut development cycles and reduce financial risk. De Jong, the chief product officer, pointed out that the engine market has become overly standardized and consolidated.
While this has provided a solid foundation, it also stifles innovation. "The industry is at a crossroads; continuing with the same old pipelines won’t solve the emerging challenges," he said. "We need a paradigm shift—flexibility over uniformity." One of the pain points De Jong highlighted is the "monolithic approach" of existing engines.
Developers often have to conform to proprietary file formats and rigid toolchains, limiting creativity. With AI‑driven adaptability, Immens aims to let the engine bend to the developer’s needs. "You should be able to swap components, append new modules, or redesign interfaces to match your workflow," he explained. "Imagine a tool that mirrors your personal shortcuts, feature set, and UI preferences, tailored for your project and team." Valient acknowledged AI’s double‑edged nature.
While powerful, it can produce unexpected results if left unchecked. "We’re building Immens so that users remain in full control of what the engine does," he said. "You can trace the history of any operation, ensuring repeatability and transparency. This control lets you create throw‑away tools for specific tasks—like generating five characters with a unique trait in minutes instead of weeks—without compromising the overall pipeline." Flexibility is baked into Immers’ architecture.
The engine does not enforce a single workflow; developers decide how much AI to incorporate and where. De Jong stressed the importance of a clear AI understanding: "The framework must be robust enough that the AI interprets commands correctly, but open enough that you can choose the level of automation you want." Interoperability is another cornerstone. By adopting open, text‑based standards, Immens can communicate seamlessly with popular tools such as Blender, Maya, or any generative content system.
"When files are human‑readable, any program can parse them," Brussee noted. "This openness lets the AI read and manipulate assets directly, breaking the isolation that many proprietary engines enforce." The broader conversation about AI in game development is often polarized. Some pundits predict a future where entire AAA experiences could be generated from a single prompt, fueling fears of a "click‑to‑game" era.
Immens’ team sees AI as a powerful assistant rather than a replacement. Valient believes AI will elevate creators: "Big games and indie titles alike will benefit because AI makes everyone more capable. The current backlash stems from disruption at an unprecedented scale." Economic anxieties also surface, with critics labeling the AI boom a bubble. Valient draws a parallel to the dot‑com era: the internet didn’t disappear; many shaky companies fell, but solid products survived.
"We’re focused on building a genuinely good engine. AI accelerates our development and expands our imagination, but the core value lies in the engine itself," he said. Whether the market is in a bubble remains uncertain, but the team is prepared for any outcome.
Funding details remain vague. Immens has secured its "first commitments" but has not disclosed amounts, describing them as "reasonable." Brussee warned against excess capital, noting that abundant funding can breed complacency. The company deliberately stays lean—just the three founders and a handful of collaborators—to remain agile and scrappy. Balancing team size with ambition is a delicate act.
De Jong explained that building an engine is complex; you can’t simply throw a million engineers at the problem. A small, focused group can make thoughtful decisions and iterate efficiently, especially within the narrow window of opportunity presented by AI’s rise. Immens is currently developing a proof‑of‑concept demo that showcases a generative‑AI‑driven editing workflow, slated for release this month.
The timeline has already outpaced their original estimate: "We aimed for an end‑of‑year milestone when we started in April, and we’re now twice as fast," Brussee reported. The business model is still under discussion.
While they admire Epic Games’ revenue‑share philosophy—"we succeed when you succeed"—they admit it’s too early for concrete plans. Ultimately, the founders hope Immens will enable more daring, artistic games. "We love games as a form of complex expression and want to see more risk‑taking and creativity," Brussee concluded.
"If our technology can help push the industry forward, that would be amazing."