Gathering and using items

Many adventure games make use of an inventory management screen as a distinct gameplay mode.^[1] Players are only able to pick up some objects in the game, so the player usually knows that only objects that can be picked up are important.^[1] Because it can be difficult for a player to know if they missed an important item, they will often scour every scene for items. For games that utilize a point-and-click device, players will sometimes engage in a systematic search known as a pixel hunt. Games try to avoid this by highlighting the item, or by snapping the player's cursor to the item.^[20] Some items are featured very often in various adventure games, and have many uses. Two examples are a rope and a crowbar.^{[citation needed]} Some items are used as part of running gags, for example being used in many absurd situations far from their original intended purpose.^{[citation needed]}
Many puzzles in these games involve gathering and using items from their inventory.^[16] Players must apply lateral thinking techniques where they apply real-world extrinsic knowledge about objects in unexpected ways. For example, by putting a deflated inner tube on a cactus to create a slingshot, which requires a player to realize that an inner tube is stretchy.^[1] They may need to carry items in their inventory for a long duration before they prove useful,^[21] and thus it is normal for adventure games to test a player's memory where a challenge can only be overcome by recalling a piece of information from earlier in the game.^[1] There is seldom any time pressure for these puzzles, focusing more on the player's ability to reason than on quick-thinking.^[17]