“Apocalypse Now” Project Set to Move Funding Efforts to Its Own Site During Kickstarter Campaigning

With nearly one week until the Apocalypse Now Kickstarter was set to close, Francis Ford Coppola and his team announced plans to move funding efforts to their own website.

Last month, Coppola and his team launched Kickstarter seeking $900,000 for the game, which will be developed by creators, designers, directors, writers, producers of other well-known games, including Fallout: New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity, The Witcher, Neverwinter Nights 2, Wasteland 2, Torment: Tides of Numenera, Everquest, DC Universe Online, PlanetSide, PlanetSide 2, and Star Wars Galaxies. Its story reads:

“Apocalypse Now depicts the horror and spectacle of the Vietnam War through the character of Captain Benjamin Willard, an American tasked with the assassination of Colonel Walter E. Kurtz. The game is an interactive recreation of Willard’s journey, as seen through a survival horror lens in which players with limited resources face unspeakable terrors. By choosing how to react to these situations, each player molds a unique version of Willard within the loose confines of the film story. You are Willard and your actions will determine his fate. Your mission begins in Saigon, where Willard is holed up in a dingy hotel. Audio and visual distortion evoke Willard’s emotions and past experiences. The game provides you subjective access to a character who is already nearly insane.”

Coppola recently stated why he decided to create the game:

“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 Capt. Benjamin Willard amidst the harsh backdrop of the Vietnam War. I’ve been watching video games 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.”

Unfortunately, the project hasn’t even neared its funding target. So far, it received nearly $175,000 from more than 2,700 backers. In a recent update, Coppola and his team explained that the new platform will serve as a “rallying point” for the game’s community and represents the team’s long-term commitment to both funding the project and sharing details of the development process.

“ApocalypseNow.com will be an engaging space where fans and backers can get the latest updates, communicate with the team making the game and continue to support the project through the entirety of the game’s development cycle. The team will rely on this dialogue with the community to help them to create an Apocalypse Now game worthy of the motion picture in every way.”

When a backer asked whether or not the Kickstarter project was being abandoned, the Apocalypse Now team noted:

“Launching our site has been the plan for two years. So this isn’t a change. And we appreciate all of Kickstarter’s support and help. But we never intended to our expected to be able to fund this game with only a Kickstarter.”

The game is expected to be released in 2020.