Epic Delays Disney's $1.5 Billion Shooter as It Shifts to AI-First Development
Updated
Updated · Ars Technica · Oct 12
Epic Delays Disney's $1.5 Billion Shooter as It Shifts to AI-First Development
3 articles · Updated · Ars Technica · Oct 12
Summary
Epic has indefinitely delayed its Marvel- and Star Wars-themed Disney shooter, which had been targeted for March 2027, as it overhauls the project around an "AI first" development model.
Internal messages cited by Bloomberg said AI tools will write all code and drive all artwork, with human developers shifted to managing and guiding model-generated assets rather than hand-coding.
The pivot follows understaffed teams and slower-than-expected progress on the Disney collaboration, according to people familiar with the project.
Tim Sweeney said Epic is moving developers to "retool for maximum AI acceleration," framing the change as a way to build more and better content across Epic and Unreal teams.
Behind the billion-dollar Disney partnership, is Epic's sudden mandate for 'no hand-written code' a visionary leap or a dangerous gamble?
Can artificial intelligence truly replace human developers in creating a massive Marvel universe, or is this just a frantic fix for project mismanagement?