Games Workshop has thrilled Warhammer 40,000 fans by reviving the much-anticipated Astartes 2 animation with a stunning teaser trailer. The excitement, however, comes with a twist: the content of the teaser will not be featured in the final animation.
Astartes 2 follows the fan-favorite original Astartes, crafted by Syama Pedersen, which is celebrated as one of the best Warhammer 40,000 animations, rivaled only by Amazon’s impressive Space Marine 2 animation from the Secret Level anthology series. The original Astartes was so impactful that it inspired Saber Interactive’s successful Space Marine 2 game, leading Games Workshop to hire Syama Pedersen to work on this sequel.
Despite years of silence from Games Workshop, which had fans questioning the project's fate, the teaser trailer released on January 29, 2025, has reignited hope. The trailer, a visual spectacle, showcases an unprecedented scale of animation for Warhammer 40,000, featuring intense melee and ranged combat, vehicle battles, and even spaceship confrontations. It displays various Space Marine chapters fighting across diverse terrains against multiple enemy factions such as Tyranids, Orks, and Tau.
It's not even February yet and the Ws for 2025 won't stop coming! Astartes is back, Brothers! pic.twitter.com/sYhu5LjwiC
— Champions of the Ice (@ChampionsOTIce2) January 29, 2025
While the teaser generates immense excitement, a post on the Warhammer Community website clarifies that these scenes are not from Astartes 2. Instead, they represent the past lives of characters set to appear in the animation, hinting at a narrative twist for the final story, slated for release in 2026 exclusively on the Warhammer+ subscription service.
The absence of a disclaimer on the trailer might lead to confusion among fans, who could reasonably expect to see the depicted action in Astartes 2. The teaser's final image suggests the characters might form part of an Inquisition-led Deathwatch Terminator squad, fueling speculation among the community.
This revival has also caught the attention of Space Marine 2 fans, who are hoping that some elements from the Astartes 2 teaser might influence future updates to their game. As Saber Interactive continues to refine Space Marine 2, there's a call for them to draw inspiration from Astartes once more, with early mentions of incorporating capes into the game.
