People have been asking this question since caveman times probably (although granted that Walmart wasn't yet open). What things do you need to help you become contented in the world; let me pose that eternal question as an example, "Do these shoes make me look fat?". Such questions have no real answer other than our appetite as humans to collect things, and if they help us feel good about our lives, all the better.

The same is true in the gaming world. Adventures need things to help the budding adventurer along, to make them better, and look better in a lot of modern games.

The motivation to buy things is strong, and we have come to expect this in almost any game. From a simple adventure game where we just pick things up off the street that may come in useful later, fashion games where you have to be as pretty as possible, to full-fledged RPG games where inventory is everything, this motivation is indispensable. If you haven't got that level 20 sword of ultimate banishing,...