nicked on 19/7/2009 at 16:58
I was looking for an old game manual just now amongst my large pile of game manuals at the back of my shelf and I realised that game manuals used to be absolutely awesome - something you could really read and get useful information out of (usually one the way home from the shops, or while waiting for the game to install), or filled with extra background information about the game world or game creation process.
What happened? These days you're lucky to get a readme with some games, not to mention the fact that Steam etc has made manuals obsolete! Take these tidbits from some really excellent manuals:
* Unreal - not only has comprehensive advice about how the game may perform on different systems and what to buy if you decide to upgrade, but has a densely-packed 5-page UnrealEd tutorial.
* Quake - has an FAQ containing this: "Q: Don't you worry that Quake teaches people that all problems can be solved by the misuse of deadly force? A: No." Genius.
* Quake 2 - Is a full-colour field guide for marines, with full descriptions of the Strogg, transcripts of marine briefings and even colour pictures of enemies and weapons.
* AvP2 - has tons of great comic-book style illustrations of aliens and predators.
* Dungeon Keeper - contains the advice "Sacrifice Carefully." This has proven most useful in my day-to-day life.
* Discworld - has a Small Ads page containing such gems as "Applicants for Unseen University apprentice intakes closes soon. Suitable applicants must demonstrate an aptitude for eating, sleeping and the odd bit of frog impersonation" and "LOST: I am lost. Please help. Contact me here. I'll wait." not to mention, in the credits: "Shouting at People - Terry Pratchett".
* Half-Life Opposing Force - has some interesting hand-written diary entries from Adrian Shepherd, giving lots of great game background info.
* Half-Life Blue Shift - has a Black Mesa job vacancy advert in the back encouraging you to call 555-MESA...
* Fallout - has a seven page article on the effects of nuclear radiation and two recipes in the back.
Anyone else have any fond manual-based memories? Ever been nearly as impressed by the manual as the game? And spare a moment for all the poor unemployed manual makers who must, right now, be cursing the invention of digital distribution...
Ostriig on 19/7/2009 at 17:21
Do recent "memories" count? It's the manual for Drakan, 1999, but I've only had it for a few months. At any rate, they have 11 pages covering "The World of Drakan", of which 5 are exclusively on its history, detailed to a far greater extent than in-game.
Koki on 19/7/2009 at 17:59
Homeworld.
Also Arcanum.
Also Homeworld.
Renzatic on 19/7/2009 at 18:10
Icewind Dale and Alpha Centauri immediately come to mind. Both had manuals as thick as a small phonebook, and were filled to the brim with interesting tidbits, art, and information.
These half assed PDF documents we get nowadays don't compare.
Thirith on 19/7/2009 at 18:13
I love all the Ultima manuals (and other in-box goodies), as well as that of the first Wing Commander game.
WingedKagouti on 19/7/2009 at 18:22
Might and Magic 6 presented a crazed wizard trying to explain how to play the game.
MoO2 includes a list of all research in addition to a thorough overview of the options available.
StarSiege, in addition to the nice and big manual, there was an equally big history book that detailed the events prior to and of the two EarthSiege games.
EvaUnit02 on 19/7/2009 at 18:27
SiN + Wages of SiN
Had journal entries (+ sketches) written by the protagonist John R. Blade.
MechWarrior 2
Styled like a mech operations manual, it had printed fingerprint. There was shit loads pages detailing flavour text of the fiction universe, including explanations of Clan jargon.
WarCraft 2 + Beyond the Dark Portal
Several densely packed pages detailing back-story.
The GTA series (3 and onwards)
Had the mock-up adverts and the like. Some of them were styled like tourist guides to their respective cities.
Vampire The Masquerade: Redemption
Several pages detailing the rich fiction universe, including all of the clans, factions, lore, definitions of jargon, etc.
Renzatic on 19/7/2009 at 18:31
Quote Posted by EvaUnit02
Vampire The Masquerade: RedemptionSeveral pages detailing the rich fiction universe, including all of the clans, factions, lore, definitions of jargon, etc.
Forgot about that. The collectors edition also came with a hardcover Book of Nod as a bonus.
Fafhrd on 19/7/2009 at 19:21
Quote Posted by Koki
Homeworld.
This. Homeworld and Homeworld: Cataclysm had two of the best manuals ever. I'm still kind of furious that I somehow lost my Homeworld manual. The whole thing's in PDF on the disc, but that's not the same as holding it in your hands.
Starsiege also had pretty amazing manuals. It had two: The Starsiege Compendium, which was a full history of the 'Siege trilogy from the invention of Prometheus to the outbreak of the Starsiege, and there was the Pilot Guide which was a more straightforward manual, but it was also sprinkled with character biographies, and some short stories.
catbarf on 19/7/2009 at 20:19
Shadowrun, a 2007 game, has a pretty good manual that takes the form of a corporate security manual scribbled over by the terrorists that are their adversaries in the game.
