Apocalypse Now goes from the silver to the video screen with crowdfunded game adaptation
Apocalypse Now is a monument of filmmaking and storytelling. It's deep look into the horrors of war, set in the Vietnam era, and based on Conrad's Heart of Darkness. Now it's director, Francis Ford Coppola, wants to tell the story across the medium of a video game. In an attempt to secure an uncompromising vision for the game, production is being underwritten by a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter. With a stated goal of $900,000 and a diverse development team coming together its an intriguing proposition.
“Forty years ago, I set out to make a personal art picture that could hopefully influence generations of viewers for years to come. Today, I’m joined by new daredevils, a team who want to make an interactive version of Apocalypse Now, where you are Captain Benjamin Willard amidst the harsh backdrop of the Vietnam War. I’ve been watching videogames grow into a meaningful way to tell stories, and I’m excited to explore the possibilities for Apocalypse Now for a new platform and a new generation,” said Francis Coppola.
Like the film, the game will not be lost in the present pop culture meta of a first person shooter, but is taking the tone of survival horror to tell its story. The hope is that the immersive nature of video games will do it all the more justice beyond the 4th wall of film. The development team assembled so far includes Rob Auten, lead writer for Gears of War, Battlefield and Far Cry; Lawrence Liberty, producer and director on Fallout: New Vegas, The Witcher and DC Universe Online; Josh Sawyer, designer on Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity; and Montgomery Markland, lead producer on Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera.
The game is set to release in 2020 with Early Access starting in 2019. The Kickstarter tiers include access to the game, early access, and other goodies. The full press release is after the jump.
Crowdfunding Campaign Launches For Development of Psychological Horror Roleplaying Game Based on the Classic Film, Led By Experienced Team Of Game Developers
LOS ANGELES (Jan. 25, 2017) - American Zoetrope has teamed with entertainment and games industry veterans to develop a psychological horror rpg based on Francis Coppola’s 1979 cinematic icon, Apocalypse Now. To maintain creative freedom and match the creative vision and artistic integrity of the film, American Zoetrope is inviting the global community of fans of the film and gamers to make the game possible via Kickstarter. The Kickstarter page is now live at https://www.kickstarter.com/
“Forty years ago, I set out to make a personal art picture that could hopefully influence generations of viewers for years to come. Today, I’m joined by new daredevils, a team who want to make an interactive version of Apocalypse Now, where you are Captain Benjamin Willard amidst the harsh backdrop of the Vietnam War. I’ve been watching videogames grow into a meaningful way to tell stories, and I’m excited to explore the possibilities for Apocalypse Now for a new platform and a new generation,” said Francis Coppola.
The Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign will be the first step in a three-year journey to give life to an interactive Apocalypse Now experience that accurately captures the tone, themes, and characters of the original motion picture. Apocalypse Now aims to blend a cinematic narrative with roleplaying game mechanics set in the midst of the Vietnam War. As in the film, players will take on the role of Captain Willard, on a secret mission to assassinate renegade Colonel Kurtz. Throughout the course of the game, players will have the ability to make their own decisions independent of the original narrative. As players navigate the unspeakable horrors of the Vietnam War, their reactions to each situation will result in consequences that will alter their journey as the story unfolds. Every decision matters, and each player will tell their own story..
"We will create a game that challenges what an interactive experience can be; just as the original motion picture challenged the concept of cinema," said Montgomery Markland, game director. "We are making a game that we are excited to play. We will deliver a greater variety of experience and interaction than is currently available within the the relatively static industry."
Apocalypse Now is being developed by a new team of game industry leaders, in conjunction with American Zoetrope. The team includes: Rob Auten, a lead writer on multiple billion-dollar gaming franchises including Gears of War, Battlefield, and Far Cry; Lawrence Liberty, whose executive producer and director credits include Fallout: New Vegas, The Witcher, and DC Universe Online; Montgomery Markland, who was the lead producer on two of the most successful crowdfunding titles of all time: Wasteland 2 and Torment: Tides of Numenera; in a special advisory capacity, Obsidian Entertainment’s Design Director Josh Sawyer, who directed Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity, and many more game luminaries to come.
American Zoetrope is delivering an incredible array of material for early backers of the project, from unique game options to props from the actual motion picture, such as the Lt. Col. Wm. Kilgore “Airmobile” surfboard and Col. Kilgore’s death cards, “not a jack in the whole bunch.” Among the rewards is early access to pre-release versions of the game, limited edition Apocalypse Now-themed merchandise, and play sessions with the development team. A select tier of backers will have the opportunity to give critical feedback directly to the development team, and even take a journey on one of the Family Coppola Hideaway Adventure packages, along with a few surprise rewards that will be announced later.
Apocalypse Now is estimated to launch in 2020, with early access coming in 2019 to correspond with the 40th anniversary of the motion picture’s original release. To learn more about the game, please visit the Kickstarter page https://www.kickstarter.com/
Key Links:
Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/
Game Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Motion Picture Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/
Game Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/
Motion Picture Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/
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About American Zoetrope
American Zoetrope (also known as Zoetrope Studios from 1979 until 1990) is a privately run American film studio, centred in San Francisco and founded by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. Opened on December 12, 1969, American Zoetrope was an early adopter of digital filmmaking, including some of the earliest uses of HDTV. The studio has produced not only the films of Coppola (including Apocalypse Now, Bram Stoker's Dracula and Tetro), but also George Lucas's pre-Star Wars films such as THX 1138, as well as many others by avant-garde directors such as Jean-Luc Godard, Akira Kurosawa, Wim Wenders and Godfrey Reggio. Four films produced by American Zoetrope are included in the American Film Institute's Top 100 Films. American Zoetrope-produced films have received 15 Academy Awards and 68 nominations.
About Framestore Ventures
Framestore Ventures is the internal incubator and venture division of the Academy-Award winning visual effects company Framestore. Leveraging 1500 creative and technical staff in five cities, Ventures combines homegrown talent and strategic partnerships to develop original IP across many media, with a diverse content slate ranging from TV shows, video games and realtime animation to live experiences, virtual and augmented reality.
About Ringling College of Art and Design
RCAD is a private four-year accredited college located in Sarasota, Florida. They collaborated with Auten and Markland on early visual prototypes of an Unreal Engine 4-rendered Apocalypse Now.
