Do you read your manuals?

[Brickman | 3,986]

I've been reading through the Japanese manuals of games I've been playing for my backlog this year. It's a great way for me to improve my Japanese and has been pretty fun to read through them to see how things are named in Japan vs the west e.g some Mario Bros characters.

Who here also likes to read their manuals?

[Gloves | 11,779]

I love reading manuals. Totally Rad has one of my favourites.

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

I never read them much as a kid because I liked to figure everything out on my own, but now I'm more likely to read them since I don't have the time or energy to play a game without knowing how it works.

[Jfreakofkorn | 282]

I always gave it a go in reading them along w chequing out the artwork 

Even liked reading the plot s in them 

[LeatherRebel5150 | 1,056]

Ive been big on picking up manuals in recent years and love to read them

[Brickman | 3,986]

20 minutes ago, Jfreakofkorn said:

I always gave it a go in reading them along w chequing out the artwork 

Even liked reading the plot s in them 

Yeah this is pretty handy for RPG's, especially older ones, because you get a good backstory sometimes.

[The Count | 527]

Only for Home Improvement (SNES).

[Code Monkey | 2,010]

I had no idea you could use the Tanooki suit to turn into a statue until I had been playing the game for quite some time and finally read the manual. Nobody had ever mentioned it to me before that.

[twiztor | 851]

when i was a kid, i would obsess over the manuals. even the generic one-pagers that came with rented NES games. it was just another way to live in that world.

nowadays, i will usually quickly breeze through them if i pick up a new game (big IF it even comes with s booklet) or a new-to-me game (disc based only). 

IMO the loss of manuals is a significant decline in the gaming world.

[fcgamer | 4,723]

4 hours ago, twiztor said:

IMO the loss of manuals is a significant decline in the gaming world.

Yes! The manual was basically the appetizer for the car ride home, or to entertain yourself while Pops was in Lowes or whatever, building up more excitement for getting home and trying out the game.

[Brickman | 3,986]

43 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

Yes! The manual was basically the appetizer for the car ride home, or to entertain yourself while Pops was in Lowes or whatever, building up more excitement for getting home and trying out the game.

Glad to hear I wasn’t the only kid doing that. I used to carry my manuals around with me when we would go shopping or on road trips and read them so I could still get a taste of the game even if I couldn’t play it right now 

[DarkTone | 985]

Yeah. Shame those days are over. 

[Brickman | 3,986]

12 minutes ago, DarkTone said:

Yeah. Shame those days are over. 

There’s still thousands of manuals to read of old games  it does suck that they don’t print them anymore though.

[Sumez | 2,952]

I used to love reading the manual whenever I got a new game as a kid.

But when getting new old games nowadays I never read the manual unless there's something I really need to clear up. And I just look for the thing I need, I don't read the entire thing.

Kinda sad, I'll admit. And even though I usually don't read them, I do miss manuals in modern game releases. The worst case is indie games which actually do have an online PDF manual, and then a company like, say, LRG, makes a physical print of the game but don't include the manual.

[fcgamer | 4,723]

1 hour ago, Sumez said:

I used to love reading the manual whenever I got a new game as a kid.

But when getting new old games nowadays I never read the manual unless there's something I really need to clear up. And I just look for the thing I need, I don't read the entire thing.

Kinda sad, I'll admit. And even though I usually don't read them, I do miss manuals in modern game releases. The worst case is indie games which actually do have an online PDF manual, and then a company like, say, LRG, makes a physical print of the game but don't include the manual.

I always receive my games to a post office box near my work. So I'll swing by at lunchtime to receive any packages. Then in the afternoon when my students are eating their snacks, I'll generally thumb through the manuals and what not, building up anticipation for when I arrive home and can actually sit down and game.

[Tanooki | 4,934]

Yes so I get them when I can still as they're a great blast to the past.  The info often in there outside the controls is helpful or at least cheesy to look at with stories the games lack, character names, hand drawn stuff etc.

[Tulpa | 3,501]

It was the only way I knew you could play as the duck in Duck Hunt.

[nesmaster14 | 436]

Yes, I think particular with older games when ROM space was premium, I'd consider it vital to the full experience of a game.  Useful reference info, tips, and supplemental entertainment.  There's surprisingly a lot of useful info that seems obscure even to this day.  For instance, the manuals for Abadox and Thundercade both recommend using Turbo controllers to play.   Nowhere else would you know that except if you read the manual.

On top of its usefulness, I also find many NES manuals very charming; there wasn't a real standard so many have their own personality and quirks, from gameplay photography, graphic design/layout, character illustrations, to creative gameplay and backstory descriptions.   One standout for me was Totally Rad (NES), with its use of real photographs seemingly of folks from the company, with fourth wall dialogue throughout.  It's unusual but fun.  I can say that about a lot of NES manuals, they're not as dry as one may expect.

Edited September 4, 2023 by nesmaster14
formatting

[T-Pac | 7,548]

As someone who plays a fair amount of Atari 2600, I find that reading those manuals can be borderline essential. Without notation on the switch-settings and controls, a lot of those games can be impossible to figure out on your own.

I'm a loose-cart collector, but if I'm interested in an Atari game that isn't straightforward and doesn't have an explanatory review from someone like the NoSwearGamer on YouTube, I try to pick up the manual with it so I know what I'm doing when I play.

[T-Pac]

[AirVillain | 489]

Yes. Reading the NES manuals is fucking hilarious. Also quite helpful.

I especially like games that I am kinda good at but a little tip here or there would really be handy (aka what icons are ).

[GPX | 1,369]

I loved reading manuals back in the 90s. I saw both playing the games and reading the manuals gives you their full experience and value.
Nowadays, I’m more collector-driven and only like staring at manuals but not open them as to preserve their original state. So maybe a philosophical take, the difference between a gamer and a collector is how much they’re willing to dig their fingernails onto the inner pages of manuals?

[DefaultGen | 5,405]

I always read A manual (PDF, etc.), not always my physical copy if it’s not in a jewel case or something. I’ve been gotcha’d too many times with some obscure missing info I would’ve got from the manual.

[G-type | 2,482]

10 hours ago, T-Pac said:

As someone who plays a fair amount of Atari 2600, I find that reading those manuals can be borderline essential. Without notation on the switch-settings and controls, a lot of those games can be impossible to figure out on your own.

Yes. There’s plenty of Atari games where you won’t be able to play it properly just by jumping in blind. A few NES games are like this too, but those tend to be more intuitive more often

[JamesRobot | 5,800]

I always read the manual the first time I open a game before I play it.  I'll occasionally come back to them, particularly if I am going to take a serious stab at a game that I haven't played for a long time.  

[SNESNESCUBE64 | 541]

Reading the manual is a requirement in the arcade/pinball scene and is typically the first thing I reference when I run into issues. It typically answers questions about the machines and many have the schematics. Some good manuals also have detailed troubleshooting steps and theory of operation. They are a good read.

That said, there is absolutely no way 85% of people on this site read their video game manuals. Be honest!

Edited September 5, 2023 by SNESNESCUBE64