Pretty Cool Games was launched 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 build a studio that operates sustainably, treats its staff fairly, and shares the financial rewards of any success with the whole team. Shefta previously headed No Brakes Games Tenerife, where she oversaw the development of Human: Fall Flat.
In addition to her industry experience, she has recently been appointed to the board of TIGA and sits on the BAFTA Games Committee, giving her a strong voice in the UK games community. Dudley, an original member of the Human: Fall Flat team, brings a résumé that includes stints at Sony Interactive Entertainment, Lionhead Studios, Rare and Marmalade Game Studio, providing a breadth of experience across both large‑scale and indie projects. To get the new, fully remote UK studio off the ground, Pretty Cool Games secured undisclosed capital from Chinese developer Hypergryph, best known for the popular mobile RPG Arknights: Endfield. Shefta explained to GamesIndustry.biz that, despite a challenging investment climate, there remains a strong appetite for fresh gaming experiences.
She added that the first conversation with Hypergryph went exceptionally well – the investor loved the concept for the studio’s debut title, embraced their long‑term vision, and appreciated their willingness to pursue off‑beat ideas. "They are developers themselves who are now supporting other developers, which made them stand out to us. We wanted a partner who was as enthusiastic about our ambitions as we are," she said.
According to Shefta, the bulk of the funding will be directed toward the studio’s inaugural game, a project that draws inspiration from several distinct sources. The design philosophy is informed by Nintendo’s emphasis on intuitive, player‑friendly mechanics, Hazelight’s narrative‑driven cooperative play, 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 create something memorable, timeless and so much fun that you remember it with delight years after you first played it." Creativity is positioned as a core pillar of the studio’s identity, not only for the developers but also for the players. The upcoming title will give gamers a high degree of freedom, leveraging physics‑based gameplay combined with level‑design systems that encourage wild, unexpected scenarios.
This approach is intended to let players express themselves through playful experimentation. The Hypergryph investment also enables Pretty Cool Games to assemble a small, focused team that Shefta hopes to keep sustainable over the long term.
The studio currently 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. Future contracts will cover QA, character art, audio, UI design, and a composer. Shefta emphasized that keeping the core team lean allows the studio to be ambitious while remaining realistic about scope.
A key part of the studio’s ethos is fairness to employees. Shefta noted that recent industry layoffs have often occurred despite the commercial success of the games those developers helped create. To counter that trend, Pretty Cool Games intends to implement share‑scheme arrangements so that if a game performs well, the entire team benefits financially. "We’re building a studio that rewards our team for success, for instance through share schemes, so if our games are successful we all benefit together," she said.
Shefta described the studio’s ambition as “taking the best of AAA and combining it with a smaller, focused team that can experiment, iterate fast, and make decisions quickly.” Her experience in AAA taught her the importance of disciplined quality and understanding the ingredients that make an intellectual property successful. However, she also observed that massive budgets can lead to wasteful decisions and make recouping costs difficult, which can be unsustainable. By contrast, indie development allows for rapid iteration, focused experimentation, and the ability to double‑down on a few strong ideas to create something special. Working in a smaller team also means each individual has a larger impact on the final product, which Shefta finds creatively fulfilling.
"Being part of a smaller team means that everyone has more of an influence on shaping the game and that's more meaningful to us as creatives too," she explained. Ultimately, the studio’s mission is to prioritize both the player experience and employee wellbeing.
Shefta acknowledges that launching a new studio will inevitably bring challenges, but she is confident that the collective experience and knowledge she and Dudley have accumulated over the years will guide them. "There will always be challenges, but we’ll rely on our experience and stay committed to building games the right way," she concluded. Pretty Cool Games is also actively seeking additional investment and a publishing partner for its debut title, aiming to secure the resources needed to bring their ambitious, comedy‑infused physics adventure to market while maintaining the ethical and sustainable principles at the heart of their operation.