Far out, man! The Grateful Dead have announced plans for an interactive video game titled 'The Epic Tour' that's based on the real-life experience of following the Dead on the road. The preparatory stage "Phase One" of the game has just launched, with full-on game play set to begin in April 2012.

'The Epic Tour' will launch players on a journey "through Grateful Dead time and space," during which the goal is to try to attend the ten most-epic Grateful Dead concerts of all time. 'Epic Tour' is also a social community of sorts, as players band together in the common challenge of shining something called "Love Light" in places where there is "Darkness," or "undiscovered, empty, or unkind places." We told you this was far out, didn't we?

"Phase One" allows users to personally design the Dancing Bear avatar that will represent them in the game and vote on the gigs that will be featured as the ten epic concerts. Those ten shows -- represented in the game as planets -- will be announced on Jan. 31. Get started designing your Bear at GratefulDeadGame.com.

Players will be able to take part at a variety of levels, from the $10 "Burrito Package" to the $400 "Diamond Package," and each level will include a certain number of "Stealies" (the in-game currency), in-game benefits and even real-world treats.

Does all this make sense to you? It's a lot to wrap your head around. Not surprisingly, when the Dead take their first foray into video game making, the result is a trip both long and strange.

Check Out The 'The Epic Tour' Video Game Trailer Here.

More From Ultimate Classic Rock