Pretty Cool Games was founded by two veterans of the hit title Human: Fall Flat – Sitara Shefta, who now serves as Chief Executive Officer, and Will Dudley, the Chief Creative Officer. Their shared ambition is to create a sustainable development studio that treats its staff fairly and rewards them for the commercial success of their projects. Shefta brings extensive leadership experience to the new venture.
She previously held the role of CEO and studio head at No Brakes Games Tenerife, where she oversaw the development of Human: Fall Flat. In addition to her industry work, she has been elected to the Board of Directors at TIGA and sits on the BAFTA Games Committee, giving her a broad perspective on the business and creative sides of the medium. Dudley, the studio's creative lead, was an original member of the Human: Fall Flat team.
His résumé also includes stints at Sony Interactive Entertainment, Lionhead Studios, Rare, and Marmalade Game Studio, giving him a deep well of experience in both large‑scale and indie environments. To get the UK‑based, fully remote studio off the ground, Pretty Cool Games secured an undisclosed investment from Hypergryph, the Chinese developer best known for the popular mobile RPG Arknights: Endfield. Shefta told GamesIndustry.biz that securing capital is challenging in the current climate, but she believes the appetite for fresh, innovative games remains strong.
"From our very first conversation with Hypergryph, we clicked. They loved our concept, backed our long‑term vision and embraced our off‑beat ideas.
It was important to us to partner with a fellow developer who was as enthusiastic about our ambitions as we are," she explained. According to Shefta, the bulk of the funding will be directed toward the studio's debut title.
The game draws creative influence from Nintendo’s playful design philosophy, Hazelight Studios’ narrative‑driven cooperative experiences (best known for *It Takes Two*), the immersive storytelling found in Disney theme parks, and the physical comedy of classic films such as *The Pink Panther*. Shefta summed up the goal: "We want to craft something memorable, timeless and so much fun that players look back on it with delight years after their first play session." The team is leaning heavily into creativity as a core pillar, not just for the developers but for the players as well. By leveraging a physics‑based engine, the studio aims to give gamers the freedom to experiment, solve puzzles, and generate unexpected, often humorous outcomes. Shefta added that the level‑design systems will be built to encourage wild, emergent gameplay, allowing players to express themselves through playful interaction.
The Hypergryph investment also enables Pretty Cool Games to assemble a small, focused team that Shefta hopes to keep sustainable over the long term. Currently the studio employs four full‑time staff members and plans to grow to ten. Immediate hiring needs include a lead designer, a level designer, an environment artist, and a concept artist.
In the future, the studio intends to bring on quality‑assurance specialists and contract talent for character art, audio, user‑interface work, and a composer. Shefta emphasized that keeping the core team lean allows the studio to be ambitious while staying realistic about scope. "We are building a studio that treats its employees fairly.
The industry has seen many layoffs despite successful games, and we want to avoid that by offering share schemes and profit‑sharing so that when our games succeed, the whole team benefits," she said. Her vision for Pretty Cool Games is to blend the best practices of AAA development – disciplined quality control, deep understanding of what makes a franchise successful – with the agility and experimental spirit of indie studios. "Working in AAA taught me to be meticulous about quality and to understand the financial pressures of large budgets, which can lead to wasteful decisions.
Indie development lets you iterate quickly, focus on a few strong ideas, and bring something special to market without the overhead of massive spending," Shefta reflected. She also noted that a smaller team means each member has a larger impact on the final product, which is rewarding for creative professionals. "When everyone can shape the game, the work feels more meaningful," she said.
Ultimately, Shefta’s long‑term objective is to create a studio that prioritises both player experience and employee wellbeing. She acknowledges that launching a new studio always comes with challenges, but she is confident that the collective experience of her team and their commitment to ethical development will guide them through. "We will rely on the knowledge we’ve built over the years and stay true to our promise of building games the right way," she concluded. Pretty Cool Games is currently seeking additional investment and a publishing partner for its inaugural title, aiming to bring a fresh, physics‑driven, comedy‑laden experience to gamers worldwide while championing a fair and sustainable workplace culture.