by James A. Moore and Mark Morris

Titan Books, out now

An encounter in the aftermath of the Predator attack on Los Angeles changes Scott Devlin’s life forever…

Not being a games player, I was aware that there was a new Predator game coming out, but not anything about it – although very near the game’s release came the news that Titan were publishing a tie-in, written by James A. Moore and Mark Morris. This prequel ties together the mythos of the Predators, as far as their incursions on Earth are concerned – from Dutch Schaefer’s surviving the first attack to the events of the sequel, and even drawing in the aftermath of The Predator (for which Moore wrote the prequel and Morris co-wrote the novelisation). It’s a character study of Scott Devlin, and the price that anyone pays who spends their time engaged with hunting hunters.

I don’t propose to go too much into the plot, but suffice it to say that Moore and Morris provide plenty of action sequences in many different locales around the globe, and you can hear Arnold Schwarzengger delivering the lines as an older, grizzlier Dutch (think of the retired Terminator in the most recent movie and you’ve got the idea). The book ends with Devlin presumably in position for the events of the game, and you certainly have a good idea of the man’s strengths and weaknesses by then.

Verdict: An enjoyable ride through the Earthbound Predator mythos. 8/10

Paul Simpson

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