Bloomberg reported that Epic Games, known for *Fortnite* and the Unreal Engine, has delayed the release of a collaborative title with Disney and instructed developers to use AI tools more actively to complete the project.
“No More Hand-Coding”: Internal Message Calls for “AI First” Approach
According to Jason Schreier of Bloomberg, citing multiple sources familiar with the project, the game being developed using AI tools is an unannounced new shooter featuring characters from Marvel and “Star Wars.” Originally scheduled for release in March, it has been delayed, and a new release date has not yet been announced.
Developers on the project have reportedly been instructed to adopt an “AI-first” production system using tools such as Anthropic’s “Claude.” The AI will handle the work, while humans will assume roles managing and directing the process.
In an internal message reportedly confirmed by Bloomberg, one of the game’s directors informed staff, “No more hand-written code.” Furthermore, the director reportedly stated that all in-game art would be “generated through a fully AI-driven workflow.”
The company, known for *Fortnite*, has long been a strong advocate for AI adoption across all departments. However, Bloomberg notes that this marks the first time a major game company has sought to build a title with AI as the central focus.
Jake Jones, Director of Communications at Epic Games, told Bloomberg, “We are embracing AI-accelerated development. Leading this effort are Epic’s developers, who envision and drive creativity in all our endeavors.”
Developers Express Confusion; Development Delays Also a Factor
According to sources, this policy was announced during a video conference last week, and some developers were reportedly taken aback. They joked about how to handle errors in AI-generated output, with some asking, “Should we just have Claude fix the mistakes we made ourselves?”
In addition to comments that this was not a serious directive and hopes that the company would reverse its policy, some reportedly expressed the opinion that it might not work as well as Epic expects.
In 2024, Disney invested $1.5 billion in Epic Games to acquire a stake in the company. The two companies have also formed a partnership spanning multiple titles, and this shooter was reportedly set to be the first installment of that collaboration.
However, according to Bloomberg, development was reportedly behind schedule due in part to Epic’s miscalculation of the necessary personnel and production time. Additionally, in March 2026, Epic Games announced 1,000 layoffs, citing factors such as slowing sales of “Fortnite.”
Sweeney: “A Major Shift in Strategy Is Underway.” AI Push Has Been Ongoing
On the same day as the Bloomberg report, Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney posted on his X account about a major strategic shift within the company.
Sweeney explained, “We are currently undergoing a major strategic shift at Epic.We’re reallocating developers and restructuring our organization to maximize the benefits of AI-driven acceleration.” He added, “The goal isn’t to get the same work done with fewer people. It’s to enable everyone here to create ‘more and better’ content, and to extend those benefits to every team using Unreal Engine.”
Epic Games and Sweeney have long taken a positive stance on AI, and the company actually utilizes AI in its products.
In December 2025, Sweeney participated in a debate regarding the merits of the “AI Used” label on the Steam Store. While acknowledging that AI tags are important on marketplaces—such as those for art—where attribution is required, he expressed the view that they are meaningless in game stores because AI will eventually be involved in nearly all forms of production.
In “Unreal Engine 5.8,” released in June 2026, connectivity features for conversational AI (MCP server support) were added, allowing any conversational AI model to be connected and used directly within the engine for development tasks.The vision for “Unreal Engine 6,” outlined around the same time, also highlights the development of pipeline features—including MCP with integration capabilities for AI systems like Claude and Gemini.
Furthermore, later that same month, immediately after the ‘Fortnite’ and ‘Vampire Survivors’ collaboration was announced at “State of Unreal 2026,”poncle, the developer of *Vampire Survivors*, stated on Reddit that they were reconsidering the collaboration following reports that Epic Games was using AI to create game assets, including *Fortnite* characters.
As Bloomberg reports, the use of generative AI in game development is sparking controversy among both gamers and developers. All eyes are on future updates to see what Epic Games’ new title will be like and whether it will actually be accepted by gamers.
