List of media references in MediEvil

The following is an alphabetical list of all media referenced (directly or indirectly) in MediEvil. This includes media which inspired the games, visually or otherwise.

Algol

Artwork and sets from this 1920 German film served as inspiration for landscapes and skylines in the original MediEvil.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

In MediEvil: Resurrection, Sir Dan references the March Hare and Mad Hatter in his journal whilst calling Zarok insane:

"Finally I get up close and personal to Zarok. He really is as mad as a march hare - who also makes hats for a living." ― Dan's private journal

Alien

The Ant Caves level in MediEvil was heavily inspired by the Alien movies and was said to be "essentially a silly version of Aliens" by Jason Wilson. In the MediEvil remake, the Ant Queen's pre-boss fight cutscene is a homage to the Xenomorph Queen's reveal in the 1986 sequel.

Bible, The

Lazarus is mentioned in one of the History of Gallowmere volumes in MediEvil: Resurrection.

Blackadder

Chris Sorrell revealed that Captain Fortesque's depiction in the MediEvil comic was largely inspired by the show, specifically the titular main characters from its first two seasons.

Captain Pugwash

In MediEvil: Resurrection, Sir Dan mentions "Roger the Cabin Boy" in his journal:

"The Harbour Master had the absolute cheek to cast doubt upon my credentials as a pirate - just because I'm wearing a suit of armour and didn't laugh at his Roger the Cabin Boy joke." ― Dan's private journal

It was widely believed that a character with the name existed in Captain Pugwash. However, the creator of Captain Pugwash successfully sued several newspapers making such claims in a libel case, as no such character existed in the show.

Donkey Kong

The gameplay in the Cemetery Hill level seems to be modelled on the original Donkey Kong.

Dracula

The Wulfrum Hall level in MediEvil 2 is heavily inspired by Bram Stoker's Dracula:

• The Count is Count Dracula himself.
• Renfield is Count Dracula's deranged, fanatically devoted servant and familiar in the book and is used as a name for the servants of Wulfrum Hall.
• The Vampire Girls found in the level may be a more family friendly version of the Brides of Dracula.
• Wulfrum Hall itself references Dracula's residence in London. Dracula's move into London is a core element of the novel.

Dragonheart

The voice of the Mean Old Dragon in The Crystal Caves level in MediEvil seems to be based on Sean Connery's performance as Draco the Dragon in the 1996 film.

Evil Dead

The name of the series itself, MediEvil, a portmanteau of the words "medieval" and "evil", was allegedly part of the original title of the third Evil Dead film. The Severed Hands present throughout the early levels of MediEvil are also based on Ash's evil reanimated hand from Evil Dead II.

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

The premise of the Dankenstein level in MediEvil 2 is to assemble a humanoid monster. The level name itself is a play on the name of the novel by Mary Shelley. In the level, Professor Hamilton Kift fulfills a similar role to that of Victor Frankenstein in the novel.

An early version of the first MediEvil known as the MediEvil Rolling Demo contained a piece of text from the Making Of book of the novel's 1994 film adaptation.

Golem, Der

Jason Wilson, art director on MediEvil, listed the sets from this film as inspiration for The Sleeping Village, Zarok's study and various house interiors in the game.

Indiana Jones

A cutscene in the Enchanted Forest level in MediEvil: Resurrection where Dan takes a piece of the Anubis Stone from the Shadow Demon tomb pays homage to the famous Golden Idol swapping scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Invisible Man, The

Captain Fortesque's look in the present day timeline of MediEvil: The Game Prequel is based on that of Jack Griffin from the 1933 film.

Jabberwocky

Although Jabberwocky is originally a nonsensical poem from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, the Jabberwocky seen in MediEvil is based on the 1977 British fantasy comedy film co-written and directed by Terry Gilliam.

Lord of the Rings, The

Several references to The Lord of the Rings appear in MediEvil: Resurrection:

• The Shrubbites in the Enchanted Forest level are a parody of the Ents.
• Fazguls, Zarok's elite bodyguards, are a reference to the Nazgûl, Sauron's "most terrible servants."
• The Pumpkin Witch calls her piece of the Anubis Stone "my precious," much like what Gollum calls the One Ring.

Metropolis

Jason Wilson listed the tower of Babel sequence from the film as inspiration for the Cemetery Hill level in the original MediEvil

Nightmare Before Christmas, The

MediEvil was inspired by the visual style of The Nightmare Before Christmas. The Town Mayor's design seems particularly reminiscent of the Mayor of Halloween Town in the film.

In MediEvil: Resurrection, the Mad Axeman calls Sir Dan "Skellington" in two of his battle taunts.

One Thousand and One Nights

Both Sir Dan and Al-Zalam use the phrase "open sesame" in MediEvil: Resurrection, which originates from the tale Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves.

Phantom of the Opera, The

In the original MediEvil, Mr. Organ in The Hilltop Mausoleum level is called a "would be Phantom of the Opera." This is taken further in MediEvil: Resurrection where the character's appearance is based on the phantom.

Pirates of the Caribbean

The cutscene at the beginning of the Dragon Island level in MediEvil: Resurrection references Jack Sparrow's introductory scene in The Curse of the Black Pearl.

Plague of the Zombies, The

On X (formerly Twitter), Jason Wilson revealed that the zombies in MediEvil were inspired by the zombies seen in this 1966 film.

Platonic dialogues

In MediEvil: Resurrection, Sir Dan refers to the boat he used to get to Dragon Island as the "Sunken Rowboat of Atlantis." Atlantis is a fictional sunken island mentioned in Plato's works Timaeus and Critias as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations.

Poetic Edda

The Hall of Heroes in MediEvil is based on Valhalla. Woden the Mighty, one of the heroes from the Hall, is named after Odin, one of the Norse gods. The Hammer in MediEvil 2 is referred to as the Hammer of Thor by the Professor.

Sammy the Seal

Al-Zalam mentions Sammy the Seal Boy whilst in Gallowmere Plains in MediEvil: Resurrection. This is likely a reference to Sammy the Seal, a book in the "I Can Read" series for beginning readers by American cartoonist and children's book author Syd Hoff.

Shining, The

The second cutscene in the Inside The Asylum level in MediEvil: Resurrection is a homage to the famous "Here's Johnny" scene from The Shining film adaptation.

Smash TV

The gameplay in the Inside The Asylum level in MediEvil was based directly on the game Smash TV.

Star Wars

Star Wars on the professor's projector.

A still shot from Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace appears on the projector in promotional images of The Professor's Lab from MediEvil 2. The image can still be found within the files of the released game even though it cannot be seen on the projector in the game. Seen on the image from left to right are Obi-Wan Kenobi, Queen Amidala, Qui-Gon Jinn and Anakin Skywalker.

Time Machine, The

The Sewers and The Time Machine levels in MediEvil 2 are inspired by H.G. Wells' The Time Machine:

• The Mullocks are based on Morlocks, a race that similarly dwells underground.
• The design of the Chrono-chair itself seems to be based on the time machine in the 1960 film adaptation of the novel.

See also

• List of MediEvil references in other media