Everquest movie?

There have been rumors of an EVERQUEST movie ever since the turn of the century, not long after the massively multiplayer online videogame first started shattering relationships and disrupting sleep cycles with its addictive qualities.

With the fantasy roleplaying game still popular even with the onslaught of challengers over the years, Filmforce says a feature is again being considered by Sony, whose Interactive division publishes and operates the game. Word is that 300 screenwriter Michael Gordon is working on the film’s story, for a planned tentpole release in 2009 or 2010. Former Marvel movie honcho Avi Arad is also producing, one of his first non-superhero projects. Initial speculation way back when implied it would be computer-generated animation, but a live-action adaptation is more likely now feasible.

No other specifics are known at this time, nor am I entirely sure what elements (other than brand recognition) identify the game and its world as anything other than an imitation of Ultima, Dungeons & Dragons, LOTR or Zork. The game allows players to select their race and class before joining others to roam the realm of Norrath battling polygonal creatures and collecting loot. But based on my limited exposure to the game, the movie’s lead character will spend an unreasonable amount of time fighting rats and performing menial tasks before gaining enough experience points to reach more interesting parts of the film.