SpyParty has earned attention over the years for being an intensely addictive, competitive game. What a lot of people forget is that SpyParty is also supposed to be a pretty game.

SpyParty mastermind Chris Hecker released a batch of fresh, updated concept levels today demonstrating the intended final look. These new environments join the updated character models that Hecker released one year ago and will oust the placeholder art that players in the beta have come to associate with the game. Hecker, and even some players, lovingly call that art "ugly."

"I'm not ashamed to show my really ugly game because I'm really proud of the gameplay," Hecker tells me as we walk through the new screenshots over Skype. "If the game had looked like this when we first showed it, people would want to talk about how pretty it was, too, and that's just a distraction."

The remodeled environments won't hit the SpyParty beta for a "very long time" (surprise), but Hecker and his development partner, John Cimino, will work on implementing the new art on a separate plane and then slowly roll it into the game. These images are rendered concept pieces, but Hecker says they're a "visual target" and he's hopeful the in-game products will be a close match.