What do you guys think of Game Manuals nowadays?

Personally I think they downgraded a lot, I know when I picked up Gears 3, I was excited for a cool pamphlet that would have cool art and explain the story etc. Although i was greeted with stickers and two pages :/ . So what do you guys think of game manuals now?

They're despicable now. When I opened Gears of War 3 and AC:Brotherhood I was really disappointed just to see the manual was a folded piece of paper.

I miss the days when they actually had instructions in them.

I don't want to play through a slow, crappy tutorial that teaches me everthing like "how to walk forward." We all already know this. Just let me look up the important moves and let me play the game.

i think the last game i bought with a good manual in it was Oblivion in 2006

I miss the days of manuals.

I remember one of my favourites times was going into town and picking up a game and get on the bus and read the manual/s on the way home. Just a little moment that was really nice for me.

The Gears 3 and Dead Island manuals were pretty pathetic.

When I open a game I love the smell of the manuals. Also they are perfect for bathroom intermissions. When i get back from my bathroom break i have some background info on the game like character bios, weapon damage or skill trees.

When I open a game I love the smell of the manuals. Also they are perfect for bathroom intermissions. When i get back from my bathroom break i have some background info on the game like character bios, weapon damage or skill trees.

VanillaFella

Exactly.

Out of curiosity, i took out two of my Xbox titles and had a look at the manuals, they happened to be MGS 2 and Deus Ex Invisible War, both stories have a rich narrative and plenty of background, characters etc. So obviously they had a pretty big manual and its a good little read.

And then took out two 360 titles, Gears 3 and Dead Island. Gears 3 has a very rich narrative and background, characters etc but a non existant manual. You can clearly see how its going.

There is less of a physicality in gaming if that makes sense. If they're getting rid of manuals, how long before they get rid of cases?

And then eventually, the discs.

I miss the old game manuals. Sniffing a brand new manual was the best. I always enjoyed looking through the Mega Man X series of manuals, and looking at the new villains.

I've noticed that game manuals tend to be thin these days, perhaps in favor of in-game instructions. I think it's probably part of the push to "go green."

Its one of the many monstrosities of the gaming industry right now. They do it to save money but not only do they not pass the savings on to us but they also expect to pay more really when it comes to DLC.

last good one i got was fallout 3, it was very cool and hads lots of useful info unlike the new ones, but i digress i never used them anyway come to think of it the only one i ever read was FO3 because it look so nice, not for controls. and like stated above i too am tired of having to be tought how to move foward i want a skip option atthe least. the only upside is its green

I miss good manuals.

I remember getting the Star Wars: Force Unleashed manual..........awful!!

It was blue text on a blackground - with dark images........so hard to read!

Black Ops had a pretty pathetic manual as well - they kinda figured - well everyone plays it lets just have a bit of paper with the bare essentials.....

I agree - Manuals have gone downhill......they need to invest some more time into them....

I agree with the TC. I usually love the thick booklets that we used to get, but nowadays they have reduces the size significantly.

I liked the stickers, put that #$(# on my xbox and bedroom wall.

They have these in-game manuals now! They're just undercutting on spending now, this is ridiculous. I look forward to opening up that manual the day I get a game and just reading though the character and weapon bios. Such a shame.

When I open a game I love the smell of the manuals. Also they are perfect for bathroom intermissions. When i get back from my bathroom break i have some background info on the game like character bios, weapon damage or skill trees.

VanillaFella

Who cares. They are being more eco friendly by not wasteing paper. Manuals aren't even necessary. Most games have a tutorial and in gears case you can watch a movie to catch up on the story.

Fight night champion didn't even have anything besides a online code inside. Saints Row Double pack doesn't have anything inside either. I remember the good old days. One of the best game booklets in my opinion is " The Warriors "

I look forward to opening up that manual the day I get a game and just reading though the character and weapon bios. Such a shame.

RedReckoning

I used to read each and every manual after recieving/purchasing my games, to get me even more hyped up/ ready to play. Now they just seem to be 2-3 sheets of paper that don't even warrant the time it takes to look at them.

Another way that game and movie manufacturers seem to be going green is with the cases of the games. Alot of games, on the part of the case that surrounds the spool where you put the disc, there are just plastic spokes now instead of solid plastic.

It would not hurt my feelings at all if they just stopped making them.

instruction manuals were nice back in the day. but honestly I NEVER read them anymore (even if a game comes with one). Most games you have to play tutorials to understand the more complex stories and controls.

With in-game step-by-step instrutions, there is less need for paper instruction manuals. Its sometimes cool to open up an old ps1 or ps2 game case and read through the instructions sometimes, but that's just the way it was I guess. If I can get a game without instructions for a good deal I'll take it. A place near me GIVES away instruction manuals for old (and some new) games. Another place near me sells them for $0.50. I guess more people learn by doing, not by reading.