SpyParty getting a visual upgrade

Chris Hecker's Spy Party will receive a substantial visual overhaul, updating its functional graphics to a stylish and timeless animated aesthetic.

The new look is the work of John Cimino, a former colleague of Hecker's; the two worked together on Spore.

"After years of working on a game that was all about aliens and sci-fi, working on a game about humans and subtle behavior greatly appealed to me," Cimino told Polygon.

"What drew me to SpyParty was the work itself. Designing and animating 20 to 25 unique human characters of the type we're making in SpyParty is an extremely rare opportunity in games."

Hit the link above to read - and see - more of the upcoming transformation.

Spy Party is a two-player game in which one player attempts to locate a spy in a crowd of AI-controlled characters, and the other one tries to look like an innocent bystander instead of an espionage agent. It's currently in closed beta and was shown off at EVO 2012.