Halo Wars 2 Video Shows Off and Details New AI Character

Halo Wars 2 launches next year, but you don't have to wait until then to learn more about the upcoming RTS game's new characters. Co-developer 343 Industries released a video where they discussed the new characters you'll meet in Halo Wars 2, including a new AI and the powerful Atriox. You can watch it below.

One of the characters that will be introduced in Halo Wars 2 is Isabel, an AI that's not like Cortana or Serina. Narrative director Kevin Grace says, "She shows up in a way that we haven't seen AIs behave in Halo before."

"She's freaked out, she's seen all of her friends die, she's seen her outpost destroyed," Grace continued. "She warns them that something bad is still on the Ark and that they need to run away."

Of course, the Spartans continue onward and meet the game's main baddie, Atriox, who takes out their squad single-handedly. Grace says that the Spartans expected your typical Brute, but Atriox is much smarter than the average Jiralhanae. Atriox is very strong, but he's also capable of out-thinking his opponents. 343 head Dan Ayoub says, "Atriox is something the universe hasn't seen before."

"That was the genesis of that character," Ayoub added. "What if one Brute was not only stronger than the others, but also incredibly intelligent?"

Additionally, the Covenant are outfitted with much more armor and Wraiths feature ramming spikes. Lastly, the video touches upon Captain James Cutter and the upcoming confrontation with Atriox.

"They've been through hell and back and they wake up in this universe they don't understand," Ayoub said. "He's going to do whatever he needs to do to protect his crew and that sets off a really fascinating face-off."

A beta for Halo Wars 2 took place the week of E3, but you'll be able to get into another one in the near future. A second beta will be held closer to the game's launch, and it's bringing a new mode.

Halo Wars 2 releases for Xbox One and PC on February 17, 2017. It's a part of Microsoft's Play Anywhere program, so if you buy the game digitally on Xbox One, you get it for free on PC and vice-versa.