Topic: Games manuals

Do you ever read the manual of a game you have?
If you do, do you read it before you start the game or when you get stuck?
Also, do you think the NL reviewers should add a small note discussing the manual in their games reviews too?

As for myself, I read the manuals if I get stuck on contrull set ups, or if I'm unsure on how to select things in game.
As for the reviews of a manual, I think it should be covered too as it is part of the game experience.

i always read them at least ones. too bad there are not many real manuals left today. i love it when they are packed with drawings and pictures and background information about the game

The cons of buying digital.

Sometimes the digital manuals are pretty cool, actually. I rarely read them, though...

I read manuals only after I've finished or quit a game, just to see all the basic stuff I did wrong or missed entirely.
But if the manual is colored, I literally spend hours reading through it several times, just to find every little piece of information that could expand my trivial knowledge of it.

But what happens nowadays is pretty disappointing. I hate these lousy quick-start manuals and how they point towards a digital manual. At the very least, printed manuals could be offered as a separate purchase or something. But they don't do that, yet many digital manuals look even more boring than the monochrome prints we see occasionally.

I love reading stuff, and... yes, weird but I read manuals, physical and digital because they're entertaining to ME.

Yeah I like game manual and I will spend more $ on my retro collection to get the game complete with a manual. The manuals of today are a joke. I still review the one page that shows the controls though.

When I was growing up with the Atari 2600 (back when dinosaurs roamed the earth), I loved reading the manuals whenever I bought a new game. These days not so much.

I read through the manual before I play any game. It helps me get a grasp of the controls and what I'm in for.

Reading through the manual used to be the very first thing I did after getting the plastic wrap off of the case, but with most games having in-game tutorials and/or digital manuals, physical manuals containing less and less information, and my own eagerness to just play the game already, I rarely do more than just skim through them nowadays.

I used to religiously read manuals, often in the car or on the bus home after buying the game. Nintendo manuals were usually the best because they were full colour and often had some nice art and backstory.
It's a shame most modern games don't have proper manuals anymore but I suppose it is better for the environment.

if i have a manual i read it first. that includes eshop games/downloads as well

I miss the days of physical manuals. I remember manuals back in the days like Legend of Zelda or Super Mario Bros 2, I sometime enjoyed getting the manuals as much as the games, especially when they had backstories in them. Now they are just a sheet of paper with controls written on them if that.

I used to read manuals, before they became those dull digital things you can only access through some menu option or another.

I especially liked the ones for the Wario series. They felt a lot more fun than those for other games, probably because they were written in first person with a sense of humour rather than like bland technical books. And hey, the one for Shake It came with a sticker book!

Depends what it is if the game needs a tutorial I would much rather have no tutorial and a decent manual otherwise I don't bother.

Have, I love manuals. I hate the pathetic excuses they have today. The best ones were for Sly 1&2. They made the manuals a conversation between the gang in the games. I've read them a few times just because they're entertaining to read because of that aspect. For manuals of today again, it looks like the new SSB has a real manual. I'm gonna have to read it sometime.

I wish I got Shake it..... But Wario World's instructions were the best ever period!

And I agree completely. Ever since Nintendo went digital, the feeling of the manuals isn't there anymore. I always read the instructions before playing the game but for a while now, I just start the game because the game itself will give you tutorials on how to play and I guess that's what Nintendo was going for. But it still can't capture the feel of a real manual no matter how you look at it.

My parents got me into the habit of reading the manual of a game before I even started to play. When I was like 17-18, there were a few games I didn't read the manual for that felt off early on, so I ended up going back to reading the manuals. It's a great way to jump right into the game, already knowing the controls and what they can do, and it really helps when it comes to the game's features. It's not very good to stop my progress in a game to research what it is I just discovered or unlocked. That just kills my mood. It's a lot better for me to take the time with the manual before start up just to get familiar with the game's key features. One of my favorite aspects of the manual too, especially in the case of Metroid Prime Hunters, is their story set up which occasionally can have a little extra story that complements what I'm about to be engrossed in with the game. It really helps immersion into a game to already be in the mood to experience it, often it's story coverage in a manual that does that for me.

Oh yeah, Cranky Kong's comments in the Donkey Kong Country manuals were awesome. Like:

Look at all these buttons! It's ridiculous I say! Kids in my day wept with joy if we gave 'em two to press!

Someone sure has a vivid imagination! I've been everywhere and I can tell you that none of these places actually exists!

A more tragic bunch of useless no-hopers you'll never see! I liked Expresso and Winky - where've they gone?

The information concealed behind these should be used as a last resort only. (Or as a first resort if you are a really poor player).

It's true I'm afraid. They've gone and included one of those awful multiplayer modes that seem to be all the fashion these days. This means you and some other whippersnappers can huddle round your flickering screen and play a few games that I reckon were thrown in at the last minute and will be average at best.

It's a castle and its creepy. Will that do? Mmm... apparently not.

Tough luck kid. I've been told to keep my mouth shut as they want to keep all the good stuff for a money making strategy guide. I'm sure some of it will appear on that newfangled 'internet' thing as well, so I suggest you take a look see there. You could also ask your friends, assuming of course you've got any. If all else fails, you'll just have to play better.

Unfortunately, today's manual writers are about as entertaining as US newspaper comic writers; aka not very. Don't insult your reader? Screw that, it's much better when the game and manuals rip everyone to shreds.

Oh printed manuals, how I miss thee!
I was the only one in my family who was willing to read the manuals before playing the game and whenever someone got stuck on the controls or an unclear mechanic, I was the one who knew what to do. But since they don't really print nice manuals anymore... I can't be bothered to read the digital ones. I just recently browsed some of the old Sonic manuals for Mega Drive and I found myself smiling at all the pictured enemies. And the Zelda 64 manuals, all that awesome art... *sigh