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The Resident Evil community is sharing its support for Lily Gao after a bitter fan backlash against the actor for her portrayal of Ada Wong in the Resident Evil 4 remake.
The Resident Evil 4 remake launched last month, adding modernised gameplay and some truly stunning graphics to the classic survival horror title originally released in 2005. While players are mostly very impressed with the game's new-gen makeover, some have been less than happy with how Ada Wong is portrayed and have taken to social media to criticise her voice actor Lily Gao. The comments Gao has received have been so numerous and nasty that the voice actor has since deactivated comments on her Instagram posts that relate to the role.
The behaviour of those players has been condemned by many in the Resident Evil community who've come out in support of Gao on social media. Over on the Resident Evil subreddit, user Btb7861 says, "From posts crying about 'Choppy Recording' to horrible YouTube comments trashing on feminism and 'Woke' culture. It's f***ing shameful people act this way." They continue, "Cold and calculated, that's Ada now. Just because it's not sexy doesn't make it bad."
Another user writes, "Bullying and harassing the voice actress is absolutely an issue and shameful", adding that "there is nothing wrong with criticism and genuinely disliking the voice as long as you respect the voice actress as she's just doing her job". Similarly, Red-Raptor3, who admits to not particularly liking Ada's voice in the Resident Evil 4 remake, says, "The fans harassing Lily Gao's social media are scum and should absolutely stop."
There has also been a flood of support for the voice actor on Twitter. One user writes, "It really saddens me that people are hating on Lily Gao. I think she did absolutely amazing and delivered such a mysterious, gentle, badass, but alluring performance, just as Ada is known for. She added a whole new level to the character, and I LOVE it."
HUGE shoutout to Lily Gao! IMO she did a great job as Ada! Mad respect and much love!It's okay not to like a performance! No one deserves to be harassed or degraded over her portrayal! Resident Evil fans should feel ashamed if your the one participating in doing so! pic.twitter.com/aLZxaZ1lkTApril 1, 2023
I watched an interview before Welcome To Raccoon City was released of Lily Gao being so excited to play Ada Wong, I can’t believe people are harassing her personal profiles and ruining this moment for her. pic.twitter.com/bSBgTmIaOtApril 1, 2023
This is a terribly sad situation, especially for an actor who's shown such enthusiasm for the role. Still, let's hope Gao has seen the messages of support that many Resident Evil fans have been sending and that this experience doesn't dissuade her from doing voice work for other games in the future.
The remake has been flying off store shelves since its launch, racking up three million sales in its first two days. In our Resident Evil 4 Remake review, we said, "Capcom has delivered a great remake of a classic game, one which captures everything that made it so special to begin with."
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