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[Jimrpg]

Since last year, I've become interested in collecting strategy guides. The idea was that with less time to game these days, I'd be able to flick through the guide and 'enjoy' the game without actually playing it. I don't think its quite worked out as I intended, as many of these guides are hundreds (300+) of pages long and take way too long to read, but nevertheless, I really like having all these books. I think some day even when I don't have the game installed, I'll enjoy reminiscing on these games.

My Skyrim Special Edition guide just came in and im pretty much all caught up in all the guides I want, so it was a good time to make this thread. If you have a guide you want to recommend, list it here.

My collection thus far -

Battlefield 4
Bloodborne
Civilization V Gods and Kings
Dark Souls II
Diablo 3: ROS PC
GTA V
MGS V Phantom Pain
New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Nintendo 4 Game Guide (Animal Crossing, Mario Kart 7, New Super Mario Bros. 2, Zelda A Link Between Worlds)
Pillars of Eternity
Super Mario Galaxy
Super Smash Bros Brawl
Skyrim Special Edition
The Witcher 3
Xenoblade Chronicles X

My Top 3 Guides so far have to be -

1. Pillars of Eternity Collector's Edition

This thing is gorgeous. The pages are really high quality in feel. Each page is beautifully designed, and the whole thing is filled with amazing artwork from the game. There's also plenty of lore at the start of the book. The only downside I've found is that the walkthrough is a bit uneven and doesn't explain some stuff. For example, and by the way I'm not a very good RPG player, the part I'm stuck at now says "... you're met by a fearsome group of Phantoms and Shadows. Slay them all." without actually telling you good battle tips. "Slay them all" isn't really helping me! Aside from that, this thing is beautiful.

2. Civilization V: Gods and Kings

Remember large PC manuals? Well this strategy guide is just like it. For the past year, I've been trying to find the Civ V guide, but it was basically sold out everywhere. I just happened to stumble across the last copy at Play-asia a month ago, and snapped it up as quick as I could.

There's no 'walkthrough' here, which is exactly what I want from a strategy guide. It has great explanations for the nations, units, buildings and has strategy to play the game. That's it. It reminds me of my old Civilization IV manual except expanded to include lots of art. I know, it sucks we have to pay $20 to buy a manual, these things should be included with the actual game (in a hard copy!).

3. Elder Scrolls Skyrim Special Edition

I'll be honest, this thing just came today, and I haven't really had much chance to flick through it. But its 1100 pages! In A4. Whoever wrote this thing (David Hodgson) is sadistic and mean. Who is going to read all of this? Regardless, if any strategy guide is worth the paper its printed on, then this would have to be it. It came with a large pull out map, and a (much needed) bookmark. This is a reprint of the existing Elder Scrolls Skyrim Legendary Edition guide, so there's no new information added since then. I was a bit indecisive about buying the previous version and in the end it sold out, so I snapped this up quick smart. If you're considering getting it, I'd suggest the hard cover version, as the book is so heavy that the paper cover is going to get damaged in no time.

One more tip, I purchased from The Book Depository and the price fluctuated like crazy for a while. At one time it was $22, another it was $40+, keep a check on the price before purchasing.

So if you have cool guides to recommend - list them below. Looking forward to seeing what guides other people like.

 

[Grim Patron]

Doom, the brady games guides like FFX PS2, GTA VC PS2. Also TW3 original guide is great. Prima fucked up the GOTY guide with poor paper. Check out the future press souls guides as well. Bloodborne, old hunters guides are great for collection.

The paperback Yokai Watch 1 guide is nice as well. wish they did one for YW2. DX MD guide is shit.

 

[Mzo]

The best guides ever made were the first Versus Books' unofficial perfect guides by Casey Lowe. You got Final Fantasy VII, Resident Evil 2, and Metal Gear Solid fully laid out with some hilarious asides.

 

[PantsuJo]

The official Vagrant Story guide was awesome. So much stats, tables and maps.

 

[Vindicator]

Bloodborne: The Old Hunters has a strategy guide as well

 

[joe2187]

Anything by future press. They are the gold standard when it comes to in depth beautiful and just all around fantastic strategy guides.

 

[Iriscomeback]

Final Fantasy 13-2 guide is very good, a lot of cool artwork in it too.

Hyrule Warriors Legends is also excellent.

 

[ponpo]

Relevant

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TABCqthpCvQ

 

[AbandonedTrolley]

I always liked the Ni No Kuni guide

 

[JBwB]

You can't go wrong with Piggyback game guides.

 

[30yearsofhurt]

I have some hardcover pokemon guides which are good.
I have the Zelda treasure chest set.
My prize possession though is the volume 1 and 2 of the hardcover Final Fantasy sets.

I generally collect anything that is a hardcover guide.

 

[Nachtfalke]

Go with Piggyback and Future Press, avoid Bradygames. Avoid Prima at all costs.

 

[bjork]

The old Official Nintendo Player's Guide and the Mario 3 guide from Nintendo Power were both super fun to thumb through repeatedly.

 

[D.Va]

Future Press has amazing guides. The Bayonetta limited edition is so good (and super rare now) and sells for 300-1,000. It's crazy. But I mean the guide is absolutely superb. Saurian Dash (if you don't know him, look him up) helped write the guide, and they even had help and an interview with Platinum Games/Kamiya. Another one worth mentioning is their Dark Souls guide. From what I've seen, it's absolutely beautiful.

Edit: https://twitter.com/FuturePress/status/771114305274216448 And apparently their next guide is for The Last Guardian.

Edit 2:

The Future Press Bayonetta guide book is probably my strong favourite. It is however out of print and hard as hell to find for a non-crazy price. Had to pay a lot for my non-mint copy but was definitely worth the money (as a Bayo fan).

YES. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it) I found a sealed one for around $400. Worth it.

 

[Ruruja]

Bradygames FF7 and Piggyback FF10 guides were perfect toilet reading material.

 

[Keasar]

The Future Press Bayonetta guide book is probably my strong favourite. It is however out of print and hard as hell to find for a non-crazy price. Had to pay a lot for my non-mint copy but was definitely worth the money (as a Bayo fan).

 

[SillyEskimo]

At half.com you can get guides for dirt cheap, fyi.

 

[aravuus]

I can't afford these nor do I have the space for them most of the time, but I've gotten a couple over the years and I love them. I really like the FF XII guide I got with the game back when it was first released. IIRC it lacked a lot of information, which is obviously a big negative, but it was really nice to read.

Slowly starting to get into RTwP battle systems and so I'm planning on starting a new BG2 run - I wonder if there's a guide for it out there similar to that PoE guide which looks really nice.

 

[SillyEskimo]

There are guides on half.com for less than $1.


I put in a $50 order a few years ago and had my mailbox stuffed with guides daily for 2 weeks straight. It was pretty cool, but I realized I really do not use them. Still, it's nice for nostalgia's sake. I don't have to play the game again, I can just flip through the guide!

 

[xuchu]

I collect strategy guides and yes anything future press touches is the gold standard. Both bloodborne guides as well as the Bayonetta guides are hands down the most detailed and lovingly crafted guides available. I also have the pillars of eternity guide and that one is my favourite outside of future press. Is there a tyranny guide coming out?

 

[maks]

From Futurepress my favorites are my two Bayonetta guides and one Vanquish. From Versus i have RE2, FF7, Street Fighter Alpha 2. Futurepress is the hands down best. I never got a hold their Okami one, ill have to keep an eye out for it.

 

[nicoga3000]

I only have one guide that I can remember seeing on my bookshelf.

Never forget this piece of shit.

Spoiler

Not my image. If it were, there'd also be a middle finger.

That said, I like guides. I think they're fun to flip through.

 

[The Xtortionist]

Final Fantasy IX ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

 

[Chronospherics]

I think that the Street Fighter V is really good. Nice hardback, with good page presentation, pretty in-depth on each character with day-one frame data.

Those kind of guides get outdated but at launch it was a really good guide.

 

[aravuus]

I only have one guide that I can remember seeing on my bookshelf.

Never forget this piece of shit.

Spoiler

Not my image. If it were, there'd also be a middle finger.

That said, I like guides. I think they're fun to flip through.

Hahah, I was just thinking of checking this one out on half.com to see if they ship to Finland. Looks like I shouldn't.

 

[mobilesworking]

.

 

[kiyomi]

I only have one guide that I can remember seeing on my bookshelf.

https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-medi...l_progressive,q_80,w_800/18p187k0bhoj6jpg.jpg

Never forget this piece of shit.

Spoiler

Not my image. If it were, there'd also be a middle finger.

That said, I like guides. I think they're fun to flip through.

Final Fantasy IX ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

What was so bad about it, out of curiosity?

 

[Jake2by4]

Legend of zelda:SS

 

[nicoga3000]

Hahah, I was just thinking of checking this one out on half.com to see if they ship to Finland. Looks like I shouldn't.

It's worth owning simply because it really is one of the worst (if not the worst) strategy guides ever printed. Call it a true piece of shit video game history/memorabilia.

 

[Forkball]

I must've had three different guides for Pokémon Red and Blue. I think the last guide I ever bought was for GTA Vice City.

 

[nicoga3000]

What was so bad about it, out of curiosity?

Kotaku AU Link

That link is absolutely worth clicking. The article is on point about why the guide is absolutely the biggest piece of trash in existence.

E: Here's a picture to help sum up the garbage:

 

[kiyomi]

Kotaku AU Link

That link is absolutely worth clicking. The article is on point about why the guide is absolutely the biggest piece of trash in existence.

E: Here's a picture to help sum up the garbage:

Wow.

 

[dickroach]

the Final Fantasy BradyGames guides were GOAT (even with all the errors)
I remember the Super Mario RPG guide being really cool also

 

[Jimrpg]

Doom, the brady games guides like FFX PS2, GTA VC PS2. Also TW3 original guide is great. Prima fucked up the GOTY guide with poor paper. Check out the future press souls guides as well. Bloodborne, old hunters guides are great for collection.

The paperback Yokai Watch 1 guide is nice as well. wish they did one for YW2. DX MD guide is shit.

I have the Bloodborne guide, I haven't used it much, because I just beat the first boss. I don't quite agree with the general consensus that its a great guide, I found that the screens were kind of low res, don't know if that's the game itself or just the printing.

Future Press has amazing guides. The Bayonetta limited edition is so good (and super rare now) and sells for 300-1,000. It's crazy. But I mean the guide is absolutely superb. Saurian Dash (if you don't know him, look him up) helped write the guide, and they even had help and an interview with Platinum Games/Kamiya. Another one worth mentioning is their Dark Souls guide. From what I've seen, it's absolutely beautiful.

Edit: https://twitter.com/FuturePress/status/771114305274216448 And apparently their next guide is for The Last Guardian.

Edit 2:


YES. Luckily (or unluckily, depending on how you look at it) I found a sealed one for around $400. Worth it.

God damn at the price. I would love the Bayo 2 guide, i had an opportunity to get this, but forgot about it and now its out of print. I think that's the interesting thing about game guides, they should in theory be worth quite a bit down the track, because there is usually only a small print run and fans dig this sort of thing.

At half.com you can get guides for dirt cheap, fyi.

That's awesome, I'm going to check this out.

I can't afford these nor do I have the space for them most of the time, but I've gotten a couple over the years and I love them. I really like the FF XII guide I got with the game back when it was first released. IIRC it lacked a lot of information, which is obviously a big negative, but it was really nice to read.

Slowly starting to get into RTwP battle systems and so I'm planning on starting a new BG2 run - I wonder if there's a guide for it out there similar to that PoE guide which looks really nice.

Neither can I really. I just buy a few a year and on the games I have a real interest in that I want to play through completely. Only last week, I scored 4 guides for a total of $7 from EB Games as they were doing a clearance so you can keep an eye out on game stores that want to get rid of stock.

Kotaku AU Link

That link is absolutely worth clicking. The article is on point about why the guide is absolutely the biggest piece of trash in existence.

E: Here's a picture to help sum up the garbage:

Geez, that's shocking.

Relevant

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TABCqthpCvQ

Yikes.

 

[Beckx]

the future press guide for the original Dark Souls is absolutely worth having if you're a fan.

 

[atomic moth]

Introduced me to actual competitive fighting game analysis. Written by some Street Fighter arcade legends.

 

[eternalthree]

Anything by future press. They are the gold standard when it comes to in depth beautiful and just all around fantastic strategy guides.

Would have to agree here.

Also, wanted to chime in and say that the FFIX guide is the WORST abomination of a guide to have ever been created. Absolutely horrible.

 

[Dangerblade]

Definitely the Bayonetta one already mentioned. The Ni No Kuni one is amazing too, so thick and full of info.

 

[porkchopexpress]

You should check out the old EA guides from the late 80s and early 90s. They weren't guides as we know them to be today but they were written like stories or first person accounts from the perspective of an NPC playing the game and they gave away the secrets (passwords, how to solve quests) in the narrative of the story.

Try the guidebook for Wasteland as a start. Cool stuff.

 

[Dangerblade]

Oh, I also have a soft spot for the Dragon Quest VIII one...there was a special secret section at the back that you had to tear the perforation of to read, with top secret info. It was so tempting to do that before I played it all the way through...

 

[Wolfgunblood Garopa]

The hardcover Dark Souls guide was almost essential for me, I had no idea what I was doing in terms of character builds and the weapons section was really useful.

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

My Phantasy star Online guide has been ripped, torn, bent, written in.

Playing an online game on your single dial-up connection to the internet meant stat tracking and item details absolutely critical.

 

[Lamptramp]

Its been so long I'm beginning to suspect I imagined it (fake edit, and now I suspect I've mentioned it here before somewhen) but I'm sure the Parasite Eve 2 guide for the PS1 was written in the first person a-la Aya Brea being debriefed.

Rather than the usual "This room contains 2 enemies and an ammo box" it was written more like; " As I entered the yard I was immediately attacked by an NMC, though surprised I was able to dispatch it with little effort, doubling back a little I found a second in a corner. I eliminated it my trusty 9MM and was rewarded with shotgun ammo"

I don't recall if it was particularly well made, or useful but it was entertaining doing a complete re-run with friends reading along with it.

[edit]

You should check out the old EA guides from the late 80s and early 90s. They weren't guides as we know them to be today but they were written like stories or first person accounts from the perspective of an NPC playing the game and they gave away the secrets (passwords, how to solve quests) in the narrative of the story.

Try the guidebook for Wasteland as a start. Cool stuff.

Yeah like this

 

[grizzelye]

I like to get Street Fighter guides. Frame data is important.

Even though it gets outdated quickly, it's a fast way to learn safe moves and properties i.e throw invincible for first 3 frames etc etc

 

[DeviantBoi]

I loved the old DoubleJump Books' strategy guides for NISA games.

I have a couple of them.

 

[Simo]

Yeah I generally collect some of the CE guides but thats about it, although I have some of the standard ones too for the PS1 Final Fantasy games. I honestly rarely ever used them ave for the FF guides especially for XII and that stupid fucking Zodiac Spear..

My collection of CE guides:

I think the OG Skyrim CE guide came out better because they used better quality paper that SE guide and it has a silk bookmark sewn into the binder instead of just a card.

 

[Jimrpg]

The hardcover Dark Souls guide was almost essential for me, I had no idea what I was doing in terms of character builds and the weapons section was really useful.

This is one that I really want, if someone wants to sell it to me at a reasonable price.

I think the OG Skyrim CE guide came out better because they used better quality paper that SE guide and it has a silk bookmark sewn into the binder instead of just a card.

That makes sense, especially for a second printing. I flipped thru the SE guide last night, the paper is wafer thin, but its still decent.

 

[theecakee]

I have a FFXIII and Skyrim one back at my parents house if anyone wants them.

I don't collect them.