Why do Vanity items / Player housing / Pets exist?

[Makeda]

I'd like some insight as to who thought that we all "wet" ourselves in excitement over "cute" pets, mounts, and sunshades.

Stop wasting dev resources in "Player Housing" - Why should I care about a housing area that's just a deliberate attempt at adding more padding to time-consumption.

Please someone explain the reasoning behind all of this, and why it has started to become a big thing in all MMORPGs?

Real "action heroes" don't need no fancy pants graphics. To heck with even 8-bit!



All that cute and fuzzy graphics is a waste of dev time. Back in my day...

Or maybe a lot of us LIKE this stuff?

You could always go back to Intellivision, or the Atari 2600. Or heck...

Text-based MUDs: to heck with ANY graphics!!!

Graphics are for wimps!

Because some people enjoy doing other things than killing poor little monsters that only wants to destroy the world.

Best D&D session I ever ran, way back in the 1980s... players arrived at the dungeon only to see Orcs and Kobolds outside holding up picket signs. The local Dungeons Monsters 101 Union was on strike for poor working conditions, lack of medical benefits, poor life insurance, and backed up plumbing...

The party had to find the local 'dungeon master' and school him on worker's rights. :P

Oh and yeah... in the 1990s I played in one where the had to stop someone from collecting all the cute and fuzzy animals of the world...

The point is, heroes aren't supposed to "fluff" around with 'cute' pets and housing. -

Vanity and cute items are catering to the Japanese high-school girl stereo-type.

No stereotyping there I guess?

I've been collecting mini-pets as long as they've been in these games. I love the housing and pets, as do MANY others. I'm in my 40s, came from an American inner city, military veteran... and have NO IDEA where your particular perception regarding cultures comes from...