Why do people play MMOs? I don't mean occasionally log on a half hour a day to whomp some bad guys and spam "lol" in random chat channels. I mean consistently logging on for hours at a time. Why?

I can't speak for others, but for myself at least, I play these games because no other genre generally allows such expansive options in regards to player character development and progression. The player starts so weak and miniscule, with next to nothing in their bags, and eventually...