Pretty Simple
- Open roles
- 0
- Founded
- 2010
- Employees
- 11-50
- Offices
- 1
About Pretty Simple
Pretty Simple is an independent video game developer and publisher based in Paris, France. Founded in January 2010 by Bastien Cazenave and Corentin Raux, the studio creates casual, narrative-driven games for mobile and social platforms. Its work combines detective storytelling, hidden-object investigations and puzzle mechanics within free-to-play experiences.
The company develops and self-publishes its games, bringing together programming, narrative design, game art and publishing. Its production capabilities include 2D art direction, character design and ongoing episodic content development. Alongside creating games, the studio manages distribution, live operations and player support, with releases for iOS, iPadOS, Android and web-based social platforms.
From social games to mobile adventures
Pretty Simple's early releases included the boutique management simulation My Shops in 2010 and the side-scrolling arcade game Magical Ride in 2011. In November 2012, it launched Criminal Case, which became the studio's defining franchise. The game combines hidden-object crime scenes with serialized police-procedural stories, asking players to investigate cases through a continuing narrative.
As web-based social gaming declined, Pretty Simple brought Criminal Case to iOS and Android and expanded it into an anthology of standalone adventures. These releases explored a range of settings and genres, from tropical police investigations and international espionage to historical mysteries, paranormal cases and time travel. This approach extended the original investigative format across successive stories while retaining the franchise's combination of puzzle play and detective fiction.
In 2023, the studio broadened its portfolio with Sorcery School, a fantasy puzzle adventure combining match-3 mechanics with magical quests and interactive storytelling. The release extended Pretty Simple's narrative-led approach beyond crime investigation into a different setting and puzzle format.
The company's games serve a global audience across Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia-Pacific. Its development and publishing activities remain centered on a single unified Paris studio.
More about Pretty Simple
Leadership and governance
- The report identifies co-founder Bastien Cazenave as CEO and publication director. His holding company, Mesa Peak Financial Holdings, serves as the company's legal president; co-founder Corentin Raux's de Conti HOLDING serves as managing director.
- Early development received venture backing from Idinvest Partners, later part of Eurazeo. The former institutional investors' board mandates ended on March 7, 2025.
Recognition and audience milestones
- Facebook named Criminal Case its global Game of the Year in December 2013. The recognition was awarded to the game.
- Criminal Case reached more than nine million daily active users within six months of launch and accumulated more than 100 million registered players.
Corporate history
- The company changed from an SA to an SAS on March 7, 2025, following an earlier conversion from SAS to SA in September 2010.
Notable credits
11 creditsOffices
Where Pretty Simple is based
- Paris, Île-de-France, France
Paris offices
HeadquartersAbout this office
**Office** Status: active Headquarters Address: 45 rue Godot de Mauroy, 75009 Paris, France Email: contact@prettysimplegames.com Phone: +33 1 89 16 69 11 Opened: 2022 Current headquarters and development studio; the company moved here on October 17, 2022. --- **Office** Status: inactive / historical Address: 6 rue de Hanovre, 75002 Paris, France Opened: 2014 Closed: 2022 Former premises occupied from 2014 to 2022; closed upon transfer to rue Godot de Mauroy. --- **Office** Status: inactive / historical Address: 24 rue de l'Est, 75020 Paris, France Opened: 2010 Closed: 2014 Former premises occupied from 2010 to 2014; closed upon transfer to rue de Hanovre. --- **Office** Status: inactive / historical Address: 16 rue Taine, 75012 Paris, France Opened: 2010 Closed: 2010 Initial incorporation domicile in 2010; closed upon transfer to rue de l'Est.
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