Hypergryph's Coreblazer makes first European bet on UK studio Pretty Cool Games
Summary
Hypergryph (Arknights) deploys its Coreblazer investment arm into Europe for the first time, backing UK studio Pretty Cool Games
Founders are Human: Fall Flat veterans Sitara Shefta (CEO) and Will Dudley (CCO); funding amount undisclosed
Studio embeds employee share schemes at founding level, tying team compensation to commercial success
Pretty Cool Games retains independence and is actively seeking a separate publishing partner and additional investment
"We've recently seen a lot of layoffs across the industry that don't align with the success of the games those same developers have made - we are trying to build something that rewards our team for success"
01
Coreblazer's first European check signals studio-level Western entry
Hypergryph invests via Coreblazer, its dedicated investment initiative, not through M&A or publishing advance
Amount undisclosed; majority of funds allocated directly to the debut title
Pretty Cool Games retains independence and is separately seeking a publishing partner
Deal originated from 15 months of prototype work by Shefta and Dudley before going public
02
Equity-sharing positioned as structural answer to layoff cycle
Employee share schemes embedded at founding level; team participates in upside if games ship successfully
Team capped at 10 (from current 4); four imminent hires in lead design, level design, environment art, concept art
Remote-first structure (founders in Leeds) removes geographic hiring constraints
"Huge budgets... lead to wasteful decisions and also make recoup incredibly challenging"
03
AA physics sandbox targeting Human: Fall Flat's commercial lane
Debut title is a physics-based sandbox with emergent systems, positioned in the AA space
Creative references: Nintendo, Hazelight (Split Fiction), Disney theme parks, Pink Panther-style physical comedy
Founders bring direct Human: Fall Flat shipping experience (multi-million-selling franchise)
"We have an idea, prototype it quickly, and see how it feels in the player's hands"
04
Hypergryph builds Western portfolio without vertical integration
Coreblazer positions Hypergryph as developer-backing-developer, differentiated from Chinese capital's usual acquisition or publisher route
Backing founders with a proven multi-million-seller reduces execution risk versus greenfield Western studio builds
No publishing control retained; studio seeking third-party publisher confirms portfolio stance, not integration play
What this means
For Publishers & Developers: Pretty Cool Games is an open publishing slot with a shipped-hit founding team - inbound worth prioritizing
For Investors & VC: Coreblazer's first European check opens Hypergryph as a co-investor and follow-on source for UK studio deals
For Service Vendors: Four near-term hires plus later QA, character art, audio, UI, and composer contracts create a defined vendor pipeline
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Locations
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