It's time to Rise From Your Grave (Altered Beast-style), as PlayStation recomp community BlackLabelHQ has released its first beta for the tremendously scary and tremendously silly MediEvil, now available for PC.

As noted by the dedicated MediEvil community, Gallowpedia, BlackLabelHQ's port reconstructs the cult 1998 adventure natively for PC, with a host of useful modern features including widescreen support, a draw distance regulator, FPS control, and various visual enhancements including improved terrain and frame interpolation.

MediEvil PC is still a work-in-progress, but you can check out the beta build at the the BlackLabelHQ GitHub. The team has made a statement that no gen-AI whatsoever was used in the recomp's development, stating that the project is "proudly made with human hands" and noting any bug reports submitted via AI responses will not be addressed. Kudos.

Released on PS1 in 1998 and developed by British studio Millennium Interactive (a new subsidiary of Sony Entertainment), MediEvil is a goofy, ghoulish 3D adventure set in the kingdom of Gallowmere. When the kingdom is besieged by the evil sorcerer Zarok, the deceased, legendary "Hero of Gallowmere", Sir Daniel Fortesque, is resurrected, foretold to free the land from tyranny once again.

The only problem is, Sir Daniel is actually a victim of stolen valour, having been killed in the opening minutes of the great battle he is written to have won. And so, bereft of any legacy the people have bestowed upon him, it is up to this hapless, luckless knight - perhaps the worst choice in the afterlife - to defeat Zarok's army and save Gallowmere and its people.

A very British underdog story, I'm sure you'll agree.

While MediEvil received mild criticism for its mechanical issues, the series would nevertheless develop a cult fanbase thanks to its distinctive visual style, tongue-in-cheek wit, and memorable protagonist. Sony would release a PS1 sequel, MediEvil 2, in 2000, which was later followed by no less than two remakes: MediEvil: Resurrection (2005) for PS Vita and MediEvil (2019) for PS4.

In addition to the MediEvil recomp, BlackLabelHQ is also working on a PC port of Konami's iconic 1997 release Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, so be sure to check out the team's progress on that endeavour. The only way to ensure more of these hand-coded, non-AI projects occur is to show our full-throated support and enthusiasm.