YouTuber Crowbcat sparks controversy after calling RE4 remake “soulless”

YouTuber Crowbcat uploaded a video titled “soul vs soulless Resident Evil 4 comparison” and presented the Resident Evil 4 remake in a way that some viewers didn’t feel made for a fair comparison between the two games.

Crowbcat is a bit of a unicorn in the YouTube space. Instead of using commentary to prove their point, they simply edit together video clips with minimal alteration and pair it with a title that does its best to explain what the video’s trying to say.

It’s an unorthodox approach in comparison to most other creators on the platform, but their rare uploads always garner millions of views. There’s clearly demand for their simple yet impactful approach to content creation. However, Crowbcat’s video comparing the Resident Evil 4 remake to the original has certainly sparked controversy.

After calling the game “soulless” in a title Crowbcat has since changed, people took a skeptical look at the almost 40-minute-long comparison video and had some gripes with the comparisons that were being made.

YouTuber Crowbcat walks back “soulless” comparison

With their Resident Evil 4 remake video garnering hundreds of thousands of views in less than 24 hours, it’s clearly become a hot topic amongst fans of the Resident Evil series.

The remake garnered praise from the vast majority of players and reviewers, making their take on the game being “soulless” one that certainly stood out from the crowd. It’s no surprise that they caught some flak for taking a shot at one of 2023’s highest rated games.

However, those who watched through the lengthy comparison video weren’t happy with the way that the remake was presented in certain parts and called out Crowbcat for the “disengenuous” conclusion they drew.

GmanLives pointed out that the ambient audio that’s difficult to hear in Crowbcat’s video is very much there with audio settings tuned properly, making for a small yet impactful difference on the game’s presentation. The vast difference in ambience is part of what initially sold some people on the “soulless” argument, and hearing the full audio made some people change their perspective.

Another big gripe the community has with his video is the way in which Ashley, Leon’s companion for a large portion of the game, was presented. It was implied that Resident Evil 4 had soul partially due to players being able to look up her skirt and get a reaction out of her.

Crowbcat has since walked back their initial title, changing both the title and description of their Resident Evil 4 comparison video to call it a “masterpiece” instead of pushing the soulless narrative. People are now calling them out for not sticking to the original take, instead opting to change the video’s title without altering the any of its contents.

You can find Crowbcat’s full video on the topic here: