Predator: Badlands has proven that there’s still life in the classic franchise, which began with the 1987 sci-fi action thriller Predator. But in the nearly four decades since that film’s release, there have been only five solo Predator video games on consoles or PC, and none of them can truly be called great. That’s why it’s time to take a look back at each of the Predator games to date and examine why they failed to live up to the films that inspired them.
Predator (1987)
Considering that the first Predator game came out the same year as the film, it was likely put together very quickly. The game casts players as Dutch Schaefer--the role played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the movie--in a side-scrolling action game that resembles a cross between Super Mario Bros. and Contra.
Technical limitations of the NES aside, it’s a little upsetting that the game spends more time with Dutch fighting rebel soldiers and jumping on scorpions than it does with the Predator, which is saved for boss battles. This might have been good enough for ‘80s kids, but it doesn’t pass the test of time.
Image Credit: NintendoComplete on YouTube
Predator 2 (1990)
It’s kind of hilarious how indiscriminate the gunfire is in Predator 2, a PC rail shooter that places players in control of Danny Glover’s Lieutenant Mike Harrigan from the film. While Mike’s battle with the drug cartels is taken from the movie, Predator 2 lets you mow them down with reckless abandon. It’s also the primary focus of the gameplay.
The Predator is only glimpsed for most of the game, and even the later levels are more about the bullet-sponge enemies charging Mike than fighting the Predator. This one is very disappointing.
Image Credit: AL82 Retrogaming Longplays on YouTube
Predator 2 (1992)
The Sega Genesis version of Predator 2 is a completely different game than its PC predecessor, and it takes a fresher approach. Instead of revisiting the rail shooter, it puts players in an overhead arcade-style shooter. Although the game does repeat the previous title’s focus on the drug cartels and criminals, it’s a lot more enjoyable this time.
Some of the other nice touches include the Predator appearing near the bottom of the screen as it hunts Mike. The Predator-ship level is also pretty wild as it turns out to have a lot of Predators on board. You can shoot the Predators, but they can take a lot of punishment. The best strategy is to outrun them. Regardless, this was easily the highlight of the first three games.
Image Credit: AL82 Retrogaming Longplays on YouTube
Predator: Concrete Jungle (2005)
As the first Predator game of the 21st century, Concrete Jungle was also the first title in the franchise to let players control the titular hunter. That’s about all this third-person action game has going for it, as it suffers from awful graphics, terrible platforming, and a stealth feature that’s dysfunctional at best.
The story also ignores the Predator comic that originally used the name Concrete Jungle and comes up with its own tale about Scarface, a disgraced Predator who accidentally left some of his tech on Earth in the 1930s during an ill-fated run-in with the Borgia crime family. One hundred years later, Scarface has to go back to Earth to clean up his mess and regain his honor. Unfortunately, it’s just not very fun or even pretty to look at.
Image Credit: Yautja Lore on YouTube
Predator: Hunting Grounds (2020)
Out of all of the Predator games to date, Hunting Grounds had the most potential. And there are things to admire about it. Schwarzenegger reprised his role as Dutch from the first film, while Alice Braga and Jake Busey lent their voices to the characters they played in Predators and The Predator, respectively. More importantly, the graphics look pretty good, and playing as a Predator hunting its prey from the treetops feels great. If anything, it makes a strong argument that Predator deserves an Assassin’s Creed-style game.
However, this asymmetrical multiplayer title does a little too much to even the playing field between the Predator and the players controlling the soldiers. Despite the Predator’s superior tech, it’s relatively easy to spot him in the jungle and gang up on him until he’s dead. This could have been the best game in the franchise, but it’s ultimately disappointing and never lives up to its full potential.
Cameo Hunter
Many of the most relevant Predator video game appearances have come outside of the franchise, with guest appearances in Mortal Kombat X, Fortnite, Call of Duty: Ghosts, Dead by Daylight, and Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands. Some of those have been really good, but even these titles haven’t fully captured the aspects of the Predator movies that make them so enjoyable.
Having said that, Predator feels right at home in the Mortal Kombat universe, and you can even perform a Fatality on an Alien.
Alien vs. Predator
For the last three decades, there have been a handful of Alien vs. Predator games based on the comic-book crossovers that eventually inspired two live-action films. Like the standard Predator games, many of these titles were hit-or-miss.
But we do have a soft spot for Capcom’s Alien vs. Predator side-scrolling arcade beat-'em-up from 1994. This four-player game lets fans pick between two Predators and two human characters as they fight their way past an army of Xenomorphs. It’s a lot of fun to play, and probably doomed to remain in limbo over licensing issues with 20th Century Studios’ owner, Disney. Still, Capcom and Disney-owned Marvel have worked together before, so hopefully we’ll eventually be able to play this game on modern consoles.
Image Credit: AL82 Retrogaming Longplays on YouTube
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