Epic Games has delayed its upcoming collaboration with Disney, a shooter featuring characters from the Marvel and Star Wars franchises, and told developers to move to an “AI first” production model. According to Bloomberg, the game was scheduled for March, but a new release date has not been confirmed. People familiar with the project told the site that developers were asked to create the game with artificial intelligence tools, including Anthropic’s Claude, and that staff monitored the outcome. In an internal message seen by Bloomberg, one of the game’s directors told staff: “No more handwritten code.” The director also said that all of the game’s art would be “generated with full AI workflows.” In a statement to Bloomberg, Epic communications director Jake Jones said the company is “embracing AI-accelerated development, led by Epic developers who are the visionaries and creative drivers of everything we do.” Disney did not immediately respond to the outlet’s request for comment. Developers were told about the change in a video call last week and some were “stunned,” according to Bloomberg sources. The same sources also said that development had been delayed, in part because Epic miscalculated the staffing and time the game would need. Bloomberg noted that Epic was already encouraging the use of AI across its divisions and said no other major gaming company had previously attempted to create a game primarily with AI. Disney invested $1.5 billion in Epic in 2024 and took an equity stake, and the two companies announced a partnership spanning multiple games, with this shooter being the first. In March, Epic said it was cutting 1,000 jobs, in part due to slowing commitment to Fortnite. A 2026 GDC survey found that more than a third of game developers use AI in their work, while more than half believe it is harmful to the industry. Today we reported that Yuji Horii, the creator of Dragon Quest, had produced a new game using AI in about 30 minutes.
