Predator: Concrete Jungle


Predator: Concrete Jungle is a 2005 action video game developed by Eurocom for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox consoles. In the game the player controls a disgraced Predator who must regain his honor by killing the humans who have stolen his technology. The game is named after the first volume of the Dark Horse Comics [Predator (comics)|Predator comics series], but does not share the same plot.

Gameplay

The game also has several bonus missions in which the player can earn rewards including costumes, weapons, and increased health and energy. A variety of weapons are used in the game, falling into the categories of melee and ranged weapons. A number of the weapons reflect those used in the Predator and Alien vs. Predator films, though others are new. The player can also use mines and bombs. Weapon upgrades are found in some of the stages. The player can also use items, such as medical kits which restore health. In first-person mode, the player can use vocal mimicry to distract or lure an enemy, while in third-person mode the player can emit a roar. During gameplay, the Predator generally emits lion, tiger, leopard, and jaguar growls.

Plot

The game begins in 1930, as an unnamed Predator hunts and kills American Mafia boss Bruno Borgia. Bruno's wife, Isabella, wounds the Predator, causing its blood to spill onto her and her newborn son, Hunter. The Predator fails to escape and is exiled for exposing its species.
A century later, now called "Scarface", the Predator seeks redemption by reclaiming stolen Predator technology from criminal factions in Neonopolis. Scarface eliminates rival gangs, fights cybernetic mercenaries, and eventually confronts Lucretia Borgia, Bruno’s granddaughter, who has discovered his identity. It is revealed that Isabella and Hunter have attained a form of immortality by dosing themselves with Predator blood, with Hunter having transformed into a Predator-human hybrid, and Isabella having become the biological core of the artificial intelligence MU / [TH / UR|MOTHER].
Scarface slays Hunter and Isabella, marking his victory with a blood sign before being retrieved by his clan. Meanwhile, the slain Lucretia's brain is revived and instituted as the new MOTHER: AI overseer of Neonopolis under the Weyland-Yutani Corporation.

Cast

Predator: Concrete Jungle makes several links between the films of the Alien, Predator, and Alien vs. Predator franchises. The film Predator 2 also featured a powerful Jamaican gang with a leader named King Willie. Hunter mentions to Lucretia that he knew Charles Bishop Weyland "before he disappeared"; Weyland appeared in the film Alien vs. Predator leading an expedition to the Antarctic, where he was killed by a Predator. The Yutani Corporation is also mentioned, referencing the Weyland-Yutani Corporation of the Alien films. MOTHER, the name of the computer controlling New Way City/Neonopolis in 2030, is also the name of the Nostromo's computer intelligence in Alien. Several other references to the film franchises are made throughout the game, including the appearance of Aliens.

Reception

The game received "generally unfavorable reviews" on both platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. IGN called it "a good idea gone bad", and cited the game's poor controls and awkward gameplay as factors. Similarly, GameSpot criticized the game's storyline and graphics.