I really don't see how this is any different from how any corporation uses advertising or various other methods to get money from people. Why do you think McDonald's colors are red and yellow? Those two colors are scientifically proven to make people hungry, red = #1 (most effective), yellow = #2 (second most effective). Also, the seats in McD's restaurants are actually specifically designed so that you don't want to sit in them for more than a short period of time (I think 10 to 15 minutes), that way there's a constant turnover of customers. I could go on, but I think you get the point. It's up to the individual to have self-control and know when he/she is being manipulated by an advertising ploy. Obviously that's not the case with a lot of people, but companies are always going to be doing behavioral research to maximize the return they see on a product and come up with new ways of manipulating the public into purchasing products.
What did I think when I read the part about the keys that can only be bought with real money? I thought, well that's dumb, I'm not doing that; even if they did that in Mass Effect I wouldn't do that. But, that's because I've been conditioned and educated to know when something like that is happening. Unfortunately, there's a lot of people in the world that haven't had that type of education... (Not trying to sound arrogant, just stating what I have observed working in retail/sales for 5 1/2 years...)
