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[GhaleonQ]

The ones I buy tend to have charming ones, but that doesn't really matter. The last time I played a game without reading the manual was...15 years ago, when I was 7.

 

[Gilgamesh]

I flip through them but only read about 5% of it.

 

[naib]

They make for good toilet reading.

I was coming in to say this.

Except for EA's manuals. Unless you shit really fast.

 

[jiien]

They make for good toilet reading.

Haha, this!

Also, depends on the game. I read through, for example, the manual for FFT: War of the Lions to see the artwork. I did not read through the manual (piece of paper?) for MW2, because it was, well, a piece of paper.

 

[Kishgal]

I might flip through them after I've spent some time with their respective game. Rarely, though. Honestly, manuals tend to have material in them that I personally consider spoilery, so I prefer to avoid that. For example, Zelda manuals love to tell you all about all of the items you can get in the game, but I like not knowing about these until I get them, so I can have my "I wonder how I'll be getting past those obstacles?" moments as I play through.

 

[Fenderputty]

Console games are so dumbed down it's almost pointless to read them. Anything "tricky" about the controls will be explained in-game at some point.

I will still skim them when I take a bathroom break, though. It's a shame how threadbare they are. At least throw some unused art assets in there or something.

This ... most games have dumbed down first levels that train the player through game play alone. There's almost no point at all. I usually read them later for curiosity reasons alone.

 

[Frester]

Yup. I like the little story blurbs, but those seem to be disappearing these days :\

 

[spats]

I always flip through them and if the designers actually put effort into making it I may read through it.

Killzone(1) comes to mind in regards to more interesting manuals:

MGS4 explained stuff as if it was a comic book

A bunch of other games have exceptionally cool manuals aswell, Viewtiful Joe might've been one but I may be confusing it with something else.

edit: Useless 6-page long manuals printed on toilet paper NEED TO DIE.

 

[hulot]

I always go through Atlus manuals.

 

[nyong]

Sometimes. I'll pick up a manual for light reading, and frequently discover things I wish I had known earlier. I have yet to read a Steam manual, but I should probably get in the habit of doing so. Especially with strategy titles.

 

[Kuraudo]

The fact that people are lamenting in-game tutorials and other content doing away with the need for detailed manuals seems a little backward.

 

[Raziel]

literally the only manual ive read in the last few years is the one for demons souls, pretty much because i had to

 

[hermit7]

Browse through it but find nuances in the game for myself. Nowadays all the items in manuals are practically spelled out in pop-ups during the game or load screens.

 

[DrPirate]

Console games are so dumbed down it's almost pointless to read them. Anything "tricky" about the controls will be explained in-game at some point.

I will still skim them when I take a bathroom break, though. It's a shame how threadbare they are. At least throw some unused art assets in there or something.

I came in here to post this. Console games are so bloody easy, it's just a waste of time. Everything is taught to you through in-game tutorials anyways. Bayonetta for instance, does this quite well actually.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

I used to LOVE reading manuals, but these days they are cheap pieces of shit. I think the Modern Warfare 2 manual is like 5 pages and half of that is spanish.

Manuals used to be littered with cool art and other neat lore to read (think DIABLO), but now they truly are just trash.

 

[Mindlog]

I used to LOVE reading manuals, but these days they are cheap pieces of shit. I think the Modern Warfare 2 manual is like 5 pages and half of that is spanish.

Manuals used to be littered with cool art and other neat lore to read (think DIABLO), but now they truly are just trash.

Yessir.

It's a combination of cost cutting and the desire to upsell the strategy guide. It's a damned shame too because a lot of old manuals were awesome.

 

[kuYuri]

Always of it's available. Digital downloads tend to not have them.

 

[The Faceless Master]

i almost always read the manual first, it's just an old habit...

 

[revolverjgw]

Manhunt had a cool manual, like a pseudo-snuff-film catalog. Rockstar usually make interesting manuals.

 

[yellowjacket25]

I almost never read the manual. The game usually has an introduction that teaches me what I need to know. Sometimes I go back to the manual later though if I forget something.

 

[Zaptruder]

No. I only pause to admire how many many trees were killed so that I can enjoy a large glossy booklet.

These days, there's not much to admire.

 

[Diablos]

I was surprised at how short the Uncharted 2 and Assassin's Creed 2 manuals were. They might as well have just disregarded them completely.

The Internet and in-game instruction are basically forcing the manual to go the way of the dodo.

Yet another justification for game publishers to push for strictly downloadable games in the coming decade. Just you wait! :\

 

[iconoclast]

Only if they're in color.

Black and white manuals can fuck off.

 

[radiantdreamer]

I read EVERY manual.

Same. I feel like I get my value's worth if I read it, and enjoy all the pretty artwork. Except when they're flimsy thin black and white manuals. Then I read it and feel the raaaaaaaage.

Black and white manuals can fuck off.

I agree. Why do we still use black and white manuals in this day and age?!

 

[UFRA]

Absolutely. Specifically when it comes to complex games like RPG's where you need to remember all sorts of different stats and powers.

It pisses me off when a game has a really flimsy manual that's like 5 pages and just tells you how to plug in the controllers and turn on the system.

I also hate it when there's strange settings in the options menu of a game, and the in-game tips don't define what it does, and the manual doesn't either...FFFFFFUUUUUUUU

 

[Diablos]

Console games are so dumbed down it's almost pointless to read them. Anything "tricky" about the controls will be explained in-game at some point.

I will still skim them when I take a bathroom break, though. It's a shame how threadbare they are. At least throw some unused art assets in there or something.

Huh? Console game skill really hasn't changed much for better or worse, overall.

I agree, the lack of art and a totally uninspired, "let's just print something lol" layout is really lame.

 

[XenoRaven]

Only if I get stuck or it's an RPG that's got character bios.

I was about 15 years late to the party on Super Metroid, so when I played it there was no manual. I had no idea there was a run button. Would have been nice to have the guide then. I just thought I was missing a power, or I had to go somewhere else. I wandered around for so long...

 

[Littlegator]

Well, I skim threads a lot here on GAF and every now and I see a random comment about posters who didn't know how to perform certain actions. It's random mostly. The only example I can give you is that some posters didn't know how to properly shake off the monsters from Silent Hill Shattered Memories.

I check the manuals, but a lot of them are pretty much worthless yes. The only one which was pretty awesome is the European No More Heroes manual. Full colour, cool style. The New Super Mario. Bros Wii one wasn't bad either.

I didn't know you could run my first time through RE4. >_>

 

[braves01]

Modern Warfare 2's manual is one of the most pathetic ones I've seen in a while at about 6 pages. I mean, why even include it if it's going to be so worthless? Yes, I know it's a shooter so most people probably skip it, but the campaign has a pretty diverse cast of characters that I (as someone who didn't play much of MW1) would have liked to know more about instead of trying to piece things together during the crappy satellite loading screens.

 

[Tunin]

Sometimes, but honestly I don't see the point of having a instruction manual if the game itself has one explaining the basics.

And BTW, they should include more concept art and game pictures on them. Really.
Pictures are no brainer, but really well done/executed game arts or concept arts are just BEAUTIFUL.

 

[Like the hat?]

Without question....every, single time. Dead serious.

It's part of my new game rituals which include (but isn't limited to) taking a deeping sniff of the manual and enjoying that wonderful new game smell!!!

I'm really glad I'm not alone. My wife thinks I'm crazy.

 

[NIN90]

This gen's manuals suck. They peaked last gen.

 

[magicalsoundshower]

I once had to check my Twilight Princess manual because I was having trouble with the fishing controls in the second half od the game. I don't think there's even a fishing tutorial in the game even though you have to do it twice to beat the game, which seems kind of weird in this day and age.

 

[ACESandEIGHTS]

Modern Warfare 2's manual is one of the most pathetic ones I've seen in a while at about 6 pages.

Ever since I bought Microsoft Flight Simulator 2 in 1984, I noticed that having a thick-ass (or at least well-designed) manual makes the game feel more legit, and less a piece of plastic media that you just shelled out cash for. And man, it's always nice to read about angle of attack and lift vs. drag while taking a healthy dump.

This is a good time to mention that the Infinity Ward/ Activision manual for COD Modern Warfare 2 wasn't fit to wipe my ass with. Because it's glossy. But also because it's so thin the absorbency would be severely compromised. And furthermore, it sucks.

 

[Sixfortyfive]

I usually thumb through them once after getting the game and then shelve them forever.

They are almost entirely useless and outdated for the majority of console games. There's really no excuse to not just include all of the information necessary to play the game somewhere in a pause menu or optional tutorial/training mode. At this point, I feel that if I have to reference an external document to figure out how to play your game, then your game is poorly designed in some fashion.

 

[Lumpy Onion]

Usually only bother to read Nintendo game manuals. Full color, covered in character art, and often quite fun to read.

 

[Supervlieg]

Only to look up stuff I forgot from the ingame tutorial. They should put all that stuff in the pause menu and get rid of them altogether.

 

[Zertez]

Modern Warfare 2's manual is one of the most pathetic ones I've seen in a while at about 6 pages. I mean, why even include it if it's going to be so worthless? Yes, I know it's a shooter so most people probably skip it, but the campaign has a pretty diverse cast of characters that I (as someone who didn't play much of MW1) would have liked to know more about instead of trying to piece things together during the crappy satellite loading screens.

CoD manuals have been pathetic for some time now. MW manual was like 6 pages long as well. CoD games really dont need a manual, by why put it in, if it is only a few pages long. Guess they want you to see the lawyer talk.

 

[Android18a]

Only if it's in colour and has story/character bios. I freaking hate short-ass black and white manuals. If they can't be bothered to do a manual properly, that says something to me.

The No More Heroes manual (PAL version) is one of the best manuals I've seen recently.

 

[Revolutionary]

If the game doesn't do a good job of explaining it's mechanics in the tutorial then I refer to the manual. Otherwise I don't really look at them anymore... ever since MGS2 and the huge spoiler in it's manual (at the time - Raiden being a playable character).

 

[Feep]

I haven't done that yet in this millenium, and I'm not even exaggerating.

Fixed for extra hyperbole.

 

[SirPenguin]

I try to, really I do, but most manuals nowadays are horrible. Absolutely horrible. They're at most 16 pages, 25% full of credits, 25% full of legal information, and the remaining 50% consist of half-assed shots of the controls and maybe the intro to the plot.

Still, I always try to. I remember a few months ago getting so frustrated with GiantBomb over something they were saying about Scribblenauts. I forget the specifics, but I think Vinny was complaining how a fire extinguisher couldn't put out a fire. All the other guys were all like "oh wow I can't believe they missed something so obvious!" and kept mocking it. As I was listening I realized that right in the god damn manual it says how some larger fires require multiple "interactions" with to put out. I booted up my copy and sure enough, a fire extinguisher puts out a fire, it just took a couple of times to put out a large one.

I just couldn't believe that someone paid to review games would actually play them without reading or at least consulting the manual. But with the sorry state that manuals are in, it's hard to blame them.

 

[Papercuts]

I always see how thick it is when I first get a game. If it's a few pages and black and white, I don't bother. If it's huge but I see it's in multiple languages I usually don't check, unless it's in color. I love a big colored manual.

 

[Nemo]

Only the colored ones

 

[totowhoa]

I used to read them on the way home from the game store when I was a little kid. I'd always read the story at the start, and go on to controls and items. When I got home, I'd bust the damn door down and get started. I miss those days. Those were the days when I would eagerly await my video game magazine for the month... that was basically how I kept track of time.

Now I only read manuals if I buy the game at the mall while I'm with my fiance and she wants to look at clothes.

 

[dallow_bg]

Yup. Especially if it's well made.

Love the Aquanauts Holiday manual. Thick, full color, and made of a softer paper, almost like tissue but stronger. Not the usual glossy trash.

 

[Llyranor]

I'm currently going through the ~600-page manual for Dangerous Waters so that I can actually play the game without relying too much on the AI crew for all the various subsystems. It's pretty educational, too, as I'm both learning how to play the game, and how the basic subsystems (navigation, sonar, TMA, sonobuoys, etc) of a nuclear submarine actually work and how they all inter-mesh with each other. It's overwhelming, but completely awesome.

 

[Wizpig]

I read them, it's one reason to buy boxed games.

But I read them after 2-3 hours in the game, because usually they contain little spoilers and when you start the game you feel like you already know the first 50-60 minutes of gameplay.

Zelda Spirit Tracks manual = spoilers about the villain that you don't know at the beginning of the game, spoilers about the weapons you will get, etc.

Oh, and most of 360 games' manuals are horrible and in black & white; in that case, i usually don't read them.
Manuals in Nintendo games are usually in full color and "entertaining" to read; they sometimes have bonuses like stickers or those kinda things that make you happy as a gamer.

Some recent cool manuals I remember are Wario Land Wii, Contact (DS), any Pokémon game manual, any WarioWare game manual.

Some recent horrible manuals include SEGA Superstars Tennis and if I recall correctly Tales of Vesperia (PAL) was also b/w.

 

[Drkirby]

Every now and then I'll give the manual a read though, depends on the game.

 

[The Take Out Bandit]

Yes.

Unless it's from Gamefly.

Either way my memory is so shit it's like I never read it anyhow. :lol