Blood monkey

A blood monkey, or BloodMonkey is a possible character or enemy from the canceled Metaforce title in development by Retro Studios, which later evolved into Metroid Prime.
==Remnants==
Several pieces of artwork in Prime's Concept Gallery use "monkey" to describe rooms and architecture. Design notes for several rooms refer to them as floors of the "monkey lair", and repeated references are made to "monkey hole[s]". This artwork was evidently used to create the rooms in the final game, as mapping data refers to Totem Access as "Monkey_Hallway", Burn Dome as "Monkey Lower", Dynamo as "Monkey_Shaft", and Ruined Gallery as "MonkeyUpper". The Burn Dome seems particularly connected to BloodMonkey, as the Incinerator Drone fought within the room is referred to as "monkeyFlamethrower" in the game's animation data, and its theme music is named "rui_monkeylower" in the game's files.
==Role in Metroid Prime==
The concept art shows multiple floors of the "monkey lair", one of which has a large pit that is "open to below". The intent may have been for Samus to pursue BloodMonkey from the lowest floor of its lair to the top, taking care not to fall down to the bottom. If so, the "Monkey Lower", "Monkey_Shaft", and "MonkeyUpper" room names were likely in reference to the structure of the lair, with "Monkey_Shaft" serving to connect the lower and upper portions of the lair.
In 2018, Jack Mathews revealed that the "monkey" rooms would have held enemies called blood monkeys.Mathews, Jack (jack_mathews). "Chozo Ruins was the first area arted and was sort of based on designs from the prior lead designer. The areas with “monkey” in the name were supposed to hold enemies called “blood monkeys." 8 May 2018 10:56 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/jack_mathews/status/994033227043098626 In 2022, he expanded on this, saying that the monkeys' planned artificial intelligence was similar to what ended up being the Space Pirates in Prime, and moved and attacked like realistic monkeys. He did not recall seeing concept artwork for them, and said the blood monkeys were abandoned as the game shifted from action-oriented gameplay to exploration. (starts at 22:55)
==Gallery==
File:Envir sketches4.png|Concept art showing the third floor of the monkey lair, resembling the Ruined Gallery, as well as a monkey hole.
File:Envir sketches12.png|Art of the monkey lair's bottom floor, which appears identical to the floor of the Burn Dome.
File:Envir sketches11.png|Art showing a "monkey beam", covered by snow and ice.
==References==
Category:Species
Category:Characters
Category:Unused Bosses and Species
Category:Unused Content