Classic war film "Apocalypse Now" is getting the video game treatment nearly 40 years on from its theatrical release, proposing "an immersive, psychedelic horror" rather than the usual trigger-happy approach interactive depictions of armed conflict.

"I've been watching video games turn into a powerful, meaningful way to tell stories," film director Francis Ford Coppola explains in a pitch video. "What you see here is a game we do want to make and we do want help from backers like you to realize it."

Asking for a US$900,000 fund, key members of the team behind "Apocalypse Now - The Game" have taken to Kickstarter in order to make their vision a reality.

"A cross-disciplinary team of AAA game developers, motion picture professionals and Interactive creatives are coming together to create a truly unique experience," the pitch explains.

"In order to maintain the creative freedom and integrity that this daring and intense tale demands, the project is being financed outside the traditional video game publishing system."

Senior staffers named are writer Rob Auten ("Battlefield: Hardline," "The Vanishing of Ethan Carter," "Batman: Arkham Origins" and "Gears of War: Judgement,") producer Lawrence Liberty (the acclaimed "Fallout: New Vegas," "The Witcher," and a pair of "Neverwinter Nights 2" expansions; the less well-received "Yar's Revenge" and "Sacred 3,") director Montgomery Markland ("Yar's Revenge," "Wasteland 2," part of "Neverwinter Nights 2"), and advisor Josh Sawyer whose glittering credits roll includes "Fallout: New Vegas," "Pillars of Eternity," "Tyranny," "NWN2," and the two "Icewind Dale" games.

An early work-in-progress clip appears to show the game adopting some conventions from the same first-person shooter genre inhabited by the "Far Cry" and "Call of Duty" franchises, though the pitch emphasizes that "this is not 'Call of Duty' in Vietnam."

'Unlike a traditional [role playing game], the emphasis is not choosing dialogue, but rather actions and postures. Combat draws from survival horror to emphasize combat avoidance and stealth."

In Coppola's own words, "It's about characters who watch you and judge you. It's about not getting killed rather than being a killer -- until you reach Kurtz."

The crowdfunding drive runs until February 24, 2017 with a full game release currently targeted for October 2020.