I miss video game manuals in my game case

[MadzombieBane]

I can’t be the only person who misses the game manual in your brand new copy of a game and now when i open them im left with a bit of disappointment, the little kid in me is expecting a lil piece of art or something. For reference i’m 20 so that shows that this was something that kinda just got phased out of the gaming landscape fairly recently. I gotta say i miss them, it may be the childhood nostalgia in me but i was more excited abt the manual and the art than i was for the actual game (some of them) i rmbr rockstar and their game manuals and art i still have the map of los santos hanging up in my childhood room now it js seems like that certain spark in gaming culture is gone. what i wanna know is, why? did game companies js think no one cared abt the manuals or did they js get lazy or did consumers js stop caring for them? does anyone miss the manual or am i js full of nostalgia?

 

[ciro64]

I miss sniffing them

 

[Elwiwi]

If a brand new AAA game costs 80€ ( those are "rare" occasions but still) Imagine what would cost if they put manuals and stuff

 

[MadzombieBane]

If a brand new AAA game costs 80€ ( those are "rare" occasions but still) Imagine what would cost if they put manuals and stuff

dare i say i’m willing to foot the bill for the manual

 

[IyoTheHelpfulWolf]

dare i say i’m willing to foot the bill for the manual

That'll be $200 for the Ultra Deluxe Preorder Mega Pingas edition.

 

[SpcDaicon]

Here is you new game manual, bro. Hope you like it!

Also, you must pay for it separatly

But seriously, the manual and other things that came in the box where the best part about opening a new game.

Unfortunetly, the Internet and digital games effectivly killed manual. Why spend money printing the manual when you can just link players to the official wiki or some bullshit like that.

 

[Unknown Gamer]

I never really looked at them. But I will say that when I did that I really appreciated them and liked that companies went the extra mile to include a little booklet that has little tips and tricks. It really did pay off to be born in 2007 when companies still cared about games and that I have a stepfather who introduced me to games from his time. It's because of him that I'm here right now wanting to play old games even if it means emulating. Screw everyone who says emulation is a crime. This is best for the preservation of our games new and old!(mostly old)

 

[MadzombieBane]

Here is you new game manual, bro. Hope you like it!

Also, you must pay for it separatly

View attachment 55208

But seriously, the manual and other things that came in the box where the best part about opening a new game.


Unfortunetly, the Internet and digital games effectivly killed manual. Why spend money printing the manual when you can just link players to the official wiki or some bullshit like that.

wow i love buying something that use to be alr included in the game

 

[ciro64]

Here is you new game manual, bro. Hope you like it!

Also, you must pay for it separatly

View attachment 55208

But seriously, the manual and other things that came in the box where the best part about opening a new game.

Unfortunetly, the Internet and digital games effectivly killed manual. Why spend money printing the manual when you can just link players to the official wiki or some bullshit like that.

This reminds me of a shitpost I made in gbatemp, wasn't expecting for something in Switch 2 to actually remotely resemble it. It sucks that this isn't straight up bundled with the console menu, it would have been really awesome. Instead it will be this pointless thing that nobody will buy. Talk about being greedy.

 

[MadzombieBane]

This reminds me of a shitpost I made in gbatemp, wasn't expecting for something in Switch 2 to actually remotely resemble it. It sucks that this isn't straight up bundled with the console menu, it would have been really awesome. Instead it will be this pointless thing that nobody will buy. Talk about being greedy.

we’re entering a dystopian reality

 

[SpcDaicon]

This reminds me of a shitpost I made in gbatemp, wasn't expecting for something in Switch 2 to actually remotely resemble it. It sucks that this isn't straight up bundled with the console menu, it would have been really awesome. Instead it will be this pointless thing that nobody will buy. Talk about being greedy.

This Welcome Tour thing really pissed me off.

What do you mean Nintendo could bundle every Wii with a full game that serves to show all the aspects of the console but now they you have to PAY for a glorified manual? What gives?

This and the $80 pricetag on games really make the greedy and anti-consumer allegations hard to beat.

 

[Grumpy_Old_Man]

Some manuals were massive, especially evident in complex games, like flight simulators(over 340 pages in the pilot handbook of the 95 version), were you find extensive mechanical details of the planes, common commercial routes, airports, etc.

 

[Zerpina]

I can’t be the only person who misses the game manual

You aren't the only one. I miss good game manuals, though. The best one I ever saw, hands down, was from Diablo. That thing was covered in lore, little snippets of the story, and had hand-drawn art. It looked more like the Freaking Necronomicon on the inside than a game manual
Some art from Orig Diablo Manual

 

[UnDubious]

Back in the day manuals often had additional backstory and info on characters and enemies that wasn't in the game, so they were pretty cool. Some nice art too. I do think they were pretty dope. I have to say, though, most people hardly read them even in the pre-tutorials days. So they were probably not important to most game buyers.

 

[MadzombieBane]

Back in the day manuals often had additional backstory and info on characters and enemies that wasn't in the game, so they were pretty cool. Some nice art too. I do think they were pretty dope. I have to say, though, most people hardly read them even in the pre-tutorials days. So they were probably not important to most game buyers.

yea i think game manuals were for a small crowd at the time but now i think gamer are starting to miss it, the character it brought to the game was so cool

 

[DanVzare]

The newest game I've gotten which had a manual in the case, was Dungeons 2 for the PS4. A game that came out in 2015, but the PS4 version came out in 2016 (and I bought it secondhand a couple of years ago).

When I saw the manual, I was soooooooooo happy.
You don't realize how much you miss it, until it's gone. :(

I know why manuals aren't included anymore. But I miss them. :(

 

[Matricks]

No, not anymore only miss them in the early old ages.
With MSX, Megadrive, SNES, PSX games and especially jap. imports, there were nice artworks drawings in manuals.
But these vanished as chilhood mem.

Thats because nowadays games instructions are too much to print it all, when games including them in-games and many games mandatory cant be skipped is gets me angry bored wasting my time.

 

[thanonyx]

I miss flipping through them and getting some story elements or getting sneak peaks at parts of the game beyond level 1. Of course, learning to play the game without some annoying tutorial that treats you like a toddler is nice too. Oh, and the artwork and sometimes you might even get some words from the creators of the game. Also, remember how the last 2-4 pages were for notes like passwords or cheats or something? Did anyone ever actually use those?

 

[MadzombieBane]

I miss flipping through them and getting some story elements or getting sneak peaks at parts of the game beyond level 1. Of course, learning to play the game without some annoying tutorial that treats you like a toddler is nice too. Oh, and the artwork and sometimes you might even get some words from the creators of the game. Also, remember how the last 2-4 pages were for notes like passwords or cheats or something? Did anyone ever actually use those?

i definitely the secret codes in tony hawk pro skater 2

 

[Pandaprewmaster325]

I read few pdf manuals the WarCraft games 1 2 and 3 and Sudden strike manuals taught me in game stuff that is pretty useful like engineers being the only infantry who can defuse anti personnel mines (there is a chance it blows up while they defuse it) i usually read the manual AFTER im done with the game

 

[UnDubious]

Also, remember how the last 2-4 pages were for notes like passwords or cheats or something? Did anyone ever actually use those?

I used to wonder the same too. I liked the concept, but I couldn't see myself actually writing in the manual. I had a vague idea in mind of the type of kid that might use them, like maybe this one kid I knew back in elementary school who had these really elaborate Lego constructions in his room. More meticulous and nerdier than me. Sort of like how you were "supposed" to draw maps on graph paper when playing first-person dungeon crawlers. I was too lazy for that, I'd rather stumble around until I found my way.

 

[DeeboDeebo's icon]

Here is you new game manual, bro. Hope you like it!

Also, you must pay for it separatly

View attachment 55208

But seriously, the manual and other things that came in the box where the best part about opening a new game

I nearly forgot about this bullshit!!!! This was INSULTING.

 

[sun0wl]

I miss registration cards and other mail-in forms...Especially the ones that came in games from companies that actually solicited fan input (Capcom/Fighter's Edge games) or offered freebies (Working Designs) if you sent them in. It felt like you were in an exclusive Kool Kids Klub for buying the game and like the company actually cared about real customer/fan feedback. Now if they want feedback, I guess they stick to focus groups and online polls or Twitter posts that can get flooded by any amount of randos and bots on the internet who may or may not have ever bought a game from the company.

 

[longestseason]

What do you mean Nintendo could bundle every Wii with a full game that serves to show all the aspects of the console but now they you have to PAY for a glorified manual? What gives?

That was Reggie's idea. He convinced them to bundle Wii Sports with the Nintendo Wii and it was a success. But as you can see now, if it was for Nintendo Japan it would've been a different story.

 

[Urbanevil]

I miss buying PC games in the 90's, and getting what felt like EVERYTHING in one of the coolest boxes! Space Hulk, Bloodnet, and countless others! Getting the code wheels for copy protection, the posters and all the extras was the coolest thing ever! Now a days corporate profit margins won't allow for the golden years to ever return sadly.1