If there were ever a shameless Resident Evil clone, it would be Carrier. Carrier isn't the only game in a long list of titles trying to capitalize on the Resident Evil craze but it seems it's one of the few to really come close to that same spooky feeling that something might jump out at you at any moment.

The game begins by describing how an aircraft super-carrier called the Heimdal is returning from its initial battle with a terrorist base in the southern hemisphere. It loses contact with command at some point during its return journey and an anti-terrorist investigation team is sent to find out what went wrong. That investigation team is never heard from again and so they send the protagonist, Sergeant Jack Ingles along with Jessifer Manning (who is playable once the game is beaten) from the Information Department to further investigate. After they spot the floating fortress, they attempt to land but the ship’s automated defense system shoots them down and so the adventure begins. 

If you've played any of the Resident Evil titles, you'll fall right into the Carrier gameplay. The controls are just short of being identical. Carrier does add a few more functions such as a scanner which allows you to see down dark corridors, detect if someone is infected, or to just get a better look at your surroundings using its first-person perspective viewpoint. The scanner actually adds quite a bit to the creepiness as some corridors are too dark to see but you can hear mutants in the distance. Turning on the scanner will help you see but you do have to wait a second or two for the static to clear which does provide some intense moments. It also is quite helpful in finding objects that you would otherwise have to manually search for. Also new is a button that allows you to switch weapons without going into the options screen. Aiming is also improved upon the RE series because there is actually a targeting device that surrounds the enemies that your weapon is currently pointed at. Instead of the guess work aiming that is in RE, shooting enemies isn't quite a chore in Carrier. A very nice feature. 

From early previews, I was a bit disappointed by the look of this title. It didn't look like a Dreamcast game and  looked rather plain. Having actually played it however, I'm glad to find that this is indeed a good-looking title. It should be noted that Carrier is entirely 3D but at some points, the background looked so good I miss took it for a pre-rendered bitmap. I should say I was corrected when the screen rotated as I walked through the room. The main character, Sergeant Ingles, looks good and is animated well. Even when there is a close up of his face, it's hard to distinguish the polygons. The particle effects such as fire look rather crappy but are not distracting at all. There are moments where colored lighting and fog seem to carpet some rooms that look quite nice and set the mood. Some of the more advanced mutants also have a complex, almost insect-like look to them. 

The music and sound are a bit of a mixed bag. The music is very dark, mysterious and definitely enhances the mood although I find that the music in the RE series is better on the whole. There are times when the action becomes fast paced and the music changes accordingly. The voice acting is quite bad, unfortunately.  I'm not entirely sure if this was to replicate the B-movie-like voice acting in Resident Evil or perhaps Jaleco didn't find the need to spend any money on talent.  Regardless, the voice acting does not fit the story that, at points, gets far more emotional and serious than the voices lead on. Usually bad voice acting can be forgiven but here it seems to really distract from the story and actually does drag the game down a bit. 

Overall Carrier is a pretty good game. The only real bad points are it's relatively short length and, as I mentioned  before, the bad voice acting. This game could be a good seller but I feel that the timing of its release -- only two weeks before Resident Evil: Code Veronica -- will hurt this title quite a bit.  Between the two, most will buy Code Veronica on the name recognition alone, if not for the more polished look. If Jaleco had released this in early February or perhaps delayed it a month after the release of Code Veronica, it would be a more recognized title. Sadly, it'll probably be forgotten in the rush for Code Veronica. 

If you are a Resident Evil fanatic, pick this title up. It's among the best of the RE clones I've played.  However if you find the RE series lacking, you'll probably want to skip this one. A must buy for any hardcore action/adventure fan.