I'm making a python text-adventure. Need help making an 'inventory'

Question

I'm making a python text adventure. It is based off of ex41 in Learn Python the Hard Way, so it is somewhat similar. My question, however, has nothing to do with that exercise. I'm trying to make an inventory so that an item can be picked up and used (i.e. a key or febreeze).

At first my plan was to use a Boolean variable so that when the item was 'picked up' it would set a value to True, but it doesn't seem to be working. I think that the problem is that the value resets once I leave the room.

Now I'm trying a list and when the item is 'picked up' the item is appended into the inventory list.

How can I make an inventory, or at least 'pick up' an item and then later 'use' it?

The lines of code that I think are important to look at are 18-20 (under the def __init__(self, start)), 77(under the def cell(self)), 161-162(under the def janitor(self)).

from sys import exit
from random import randint
import time

prompt = '> '


class Game(object):

    def __init__(self, start):
        self.quips = [
            "Way to go, you died."   
            "Now you're dead.  Sweet.",
            "Well isn't this just peachy?  You're dead.  (It's not peachy.)"
                     ]
        self.start = start
        #self.smell = 0
        #self.Febreeze = False
        #self.key = False
        self.inventory = []

        #if self.smell >=2:
         #   return 'death'

    def play(self):
        next = self.start

        while True:
            print "\n-------"
            room = getattr(self, next)
            next = room()

    def death(self):
        print self.quips[randint(0, len(self.quips)-1)]
        exit(1)

    def intro(self):
        print "You wake up."
        print "You're in a dark cell."
        print "You have no idea who you are or where you are."
        print "The door is slightly open."
        print "You stagger through the door.  The light is blinding."
        print "You have just escaped imprisonment and you're on the run."
        return 'central_corridor'

    def central_corridor(self):
        print "In front of you is a long corridor with no doors on the side, but you think you can make out a door at the very end."
        print "Behind you is the cell that you have just escaped."

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "cell" in next:
            print "You decide to go back into your cell."
            return 'cell'
        elif "forward" in next:
            print "You travel down the corridor towards the door."
            return 'front_corridor'
        else:
            print "That command doesn't exist."
            return 'central_corridor'

    def cell(self):
        print "You're standing in the middle of a musty cell."
        print "There is a bed in the corner with a rotting mattress."
        print "Under the bed the bricks are loose."
        print "In the opposite corner there is a dirty toilet that implies that prison food is even worse than Taco Bell."
        print "There are some scratches on the wall next to the toilet."
        print "Behind you is an exit into the corridor."


        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "toilet" in next:
            print "It'd probably be best if this toilet wasn't described."
            #self.smell = self.smell + 1
            return 'cell'
        elif "febreeze" in next and "Febreeze" in self.inventory #and self.Febreeze = True:
            print "You use the Febreeze on the toilet to get rid of the odor."
            print "Now you can go behind the toilet to read the rest of the scratches."
        elif "scratches" in next:
            print "The scratches on the wall seem to be tally marks.  It goes up to 123.  I wonder what it means."
            print "You see more scratches behind the toilet, but the stench is too much for you to handle."
            print "If only you could get rid of the smell..."
            #self.smell = self.smell + 1
            return 'cell'
        elif "bed" in next:
            print "There are various stains on the mattress.  Some of the springs are poking up into the mattress. Ouch."
            print "Buried between the wall and the mattress is a stuffed animal."
            return 'cell'
        elif "bricks" in next:
            print "You pull the bricks out of the floor and find a few pieces of toilet paper."
            print "There is a note written on them in what you hope is dried blood."
            print "The note reads:\n -------------------------\nthe closet!! the closet in the walls i'm not \nsure\twhich one it is but its defin-\nly in the hall. i hear it in the bricks!\n---------------------------"
            print "Hmm, maybe it's a hint or something."
        elif "corridor" in next:
            return 'central_corridor'
        else:
            print "I do not understand how to %s" % next
            return 'cell'

    def front_corridor(self):
        print "You are standing in front of a door."
        print "On the side of the door is a keypad."

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "keypad" in next:
            return 'keypad'
        elif "wall" in next:
            return 'wall'
        elif "back" in next:
            return 'central_corridor'
        else:
            print "I don't understand %s" % next
            return 'front_corridor'

    def wall(self):
        print "Which wall do you want to check?"

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "left" in next:
            return 'left'
        elif "right" in next:
            return 'right'
        elif "back" in next:
            return 'front_corridor'

    def right(self):
        print "You examine the wall carefully, running your fingers across each of the bricks."
        print "Unfortunately it doesn't look like anything of value is in this wall."
        print "Well, you just wasted some time."
        return 'wall'

    def left(self):
        print "You examine the wall carefully, running your fingers across each of the bricks."
        print "One of the bricks seems to be protruding from the wall."
        print "Do you push it?"

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if next[0] == "y":
            print "A few of the bricks shift, revealing a secret door way."
            return 'janitor'
        elif next[0] == "n":
            print "You decide not to push the brick. Good thinking, it may have been a booby trap."
            return 'front_corridor'
        else:
            print "That doesn't exactly make sense..."
            return 'wall'

    def janitor(self):
        print "You are in a room filled with janitorial tools."
        print "On your left you see a few cans of Febreeze, a plunger and a Playboy magazine."

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "febreeze" in next:
            print "You pick up some Febreeze and put it in your back pocket."
            print "Maybe this will be useful somewhere down the line."
            self.inventory.append("Febreeze")
            #self.Febreeze = True
            return 'janitor'
        elif "plunger" in next:
            print "You try to pick up the plunger but it appears to be stuck in the ground."
            print "After tugging for a few minutes the handle comes out, leaving the rubber suction cup plastered to the floor."
            print "Who knows what's keeping it there."
            print "You decide not to touch it."
            return 'janitor'
        elif "playboy" in next:
            print "Well isn't that nice."
            print "These janitors certainly have good taste."
            return 'janitor'
        elif "back" in next:
            return 'front_corridor'
        else:
            print "Do WHAT with WHAT?"
            return 'janitor'

    def keypad(self):
        print "Above the keypad there is a sign that reads:\n-----------\nInput a 3 digit code.\nWarning: If code is incorrect 3 times, keypad will self-destruct.\n-----------"
        code = "%d%d%d" % (randint(1,9), randint(1,9), randint(1,9))
        guess = raw_input("Password: ")
        guesses = 0

        while guess != code and guesses < 2:
            print "BZZZZZEDD!"
            guesses += 1
            guess = raw_input("Password: ")

        if guess == code:
            print "The keypad beeps in acceptance.  Wow, that was a good guess"
            print "The door swings open."
            print "Behind the door is a long bridge suspended over a lake of lava."
            return 'bridge'
        elif "key" in guess and key == True:
            print "You flash your card key across the keypad."
            print "There is a beep as the door swings open."
            print "Behind the door is a long bridge suspended over a lake of lava."
            return 'bridge'
        else:
            print "The keypad buzzes one last time and then you hear a sickening melting"
            print "sound as the lock mechanism fuses together."
            print "There is a small clicking while the keypad countsdown."
            print "3"
            time.sleep(1)
            print "2"
            time.sleep(1)
            print "1"
            time.sleep(1)
            print "There is a large explosion and you are caught right in the middle of it."
            print "The fiery blast tears your skin from your body as you scream in agony."
            return 'death'

    def bridge(self):
        print "You carefully walk onto the bridge."
        print "One false move and you could be dead."
        print "Across the bridge is a door leading to the outside world."

        next = raw_input(prompt)

        if "jump" in next:
            print "You jump to your death."
            print "Probably not the best idea."
        elif "run" in next:
            print "You run"

a_game = Game("intro")
a_game.play()

Answer 1

Your approach seems to work fine, but you have a couple of bugs. In cell(), you need a : after the elif "febreeze"... statement (before the comment starts). Also, at the end of that elif block, you need to return 'cell'. With these changes, I can pick up the Febreeze and use it.

Answer 2

If you define the inventory as a list(that's what I did), then you can do:

    class Attributes:
        def __init__(self, inventory):
            self.inventory = inventory

    Player = Attributes([])
    Player.inventory.append("Febreeze")

The square brackets make the inventory, and the "append" adds Febreeze to it.

Answer 3

if you tryed to define it as a list e.g (guessing this is on python)

def inventory[]
    inventory.append
add item (inventory)

cannot rember how to add it to the inventory but there is the basics