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Arbiter in Killer Instinct is not the same as in Halo

343i explains why they're changing the character.

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The Xbox One fighters among you may already have noticed that the character Arbiter from the Halo universe is making an appearance in Killer Instinct. However, when he was shown in a recent trailer, some fans noticed that the voice acting sounded unlike usual actor Keith David, and 343 Industries has now clarified this issue.

It simply isn't the same Arbiter, which they also explained over on Halo Waypoint:

"We get it, we get it. The answer is that from pretty early on it was decided that to both make things easier from a fictional explainability perspective, as well as take full advantage of all the cool opportunities available in the Killer Instinct ecosystem, that it would be best to create a versatile "could be anyone" Sangheili warrior for the role, while leveraging the obvious advantages that the familiarity of the Arbiter title and characterization might afford us.

"Just as countless Arbiters have faced impossible odds to represent the honor and glory of their people, this Arbiter was created to represent the glory and honor of the Halo universe against an impossible new challenge."

If you don't think this explanation was as strong as it could have been, 343 Industries seems to take it all with a dose of humour:

"How can we say all that with a straight face? Shut up is how. How does this explain why he's fighting a cyborg dinosaur in a Mediterranean oasis? Silence fool! How does this explain some very cool easter eggs on a Sanghelios-inspired level? Shut your noisehole is how."

You don't have to worry about Keith David not doing the voice in future Halo games, because the studio's head chef, Frank O'Connor, has this to say about the actor:

"[Keith] David of course, IS 'The Arbiter' from the Halo game universe for all intents and purposes, and will continue to be as long as he'll have us."

Killer Instinct

Thanks, Gamespot.

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