Brutes return in Halo: Infinite, Atriox and Banished are key enemies

Brutes are back in Halo: Infinite, and we could see the return of The Flood as well.

The brutes skipped Halo 5, but they're coming back in 343i's big next-gen Halo sequel. A recent Halo: Infinite teaser confirms some major story beats, including Atriox as a main villain. The audio log confirms The Banished are vying for control over Zeta Halo and want to utterly wipe out humanity, likely as payback for the events of Halo Wars 2.

"The hour approaches. Our forces occupy the ring. Within hours, it'll be under our control. Humanity will burn. Their brazen defiance will be all but a memory. No more prophets. No more lies. We stand together. Brothers to the end. We are his will, we are his legacy, we are the Banished," the teaser says.

343 Industries plans a big Halo: Infinite gameplay blowout spectacular but we're not 100% sure when it'll drop. It could be part of the big Xbox event slated in July, but new sources say Microsoft will end June with a big surprise announcement salvo.

Details on Halo: Infinite are light outside of the brute tease. We know the game is built on hope and herosim, and aims to capture the sci-fi magic, wonder, and overall themes of Halo: Combat Evolved.

"We really wanted to have more hope, more mystery, more wonder, more agency, more heroism, and more symbolism in the trailer. We really wanted to focus on that feeling of being able to have a living world at your fingertips and to get back to what Halo 1 espoused," 343i's Dan Chosich said in 2018.

We've also speculated that Halo: Infinite could have a unique live service-based campaign that continually evolves and unfolds over time, complete with new chapters, rotating missions, and online co-op action.

Halo: Infinite will launch alongside Microsoft's next-gen Xbox Series X in Holiday 2020.