Ultimate Game Manual

M

Marweas

Weasel4
Veteran X
So I can't even remember the last time I read a whole manual. Invariably I sit down to play a game, go through the options, configure everything, and go play. After about an hour or more, I find there's this ONE thing I don't get. In Metal Arms it was how to set the default quick weapon select. After looking up that ONE thing in the manual, I never touch it again. (Oddly enough I can't ever bring myself to throw them away, but that's another story.)

My oldest son on the other hand reads game manuals and strategy guides over and over and over. I don't get it, but he's 15 so whatever.

What's your favorite manual? What sections/parts/elements do you most want to see in one? Do you like 'em printed and compact or huge and detailed on a PDF that can be searched? What NEW thing would you like to see in a manual. Or is there something old you'd like brought back?
 
I like manuals to have a rich backstory, lots of artwork, etc. I usually read through them while I'm installing the game or sitting on the toilet. :-D
 
Personally, I just look at the pictures and most of the time they are black and white, so I fan thru it at best.
 
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I'll scan through them just to see if there is anything of special interest, other than that I dont use them at all for FPS games. If you intend to make it useful, provide an explination of every possible variable you can set in clientprefs.cs or what have you, so people can fine tune their configs.
 
I just like a quick 3 page setup/install notes and keys/joystick commands list. You can even make it the CD cover if you like.

I prefer the rest to be like the T1 training missions (I still remember crapping myself when I could land on the platform without falling off). During the training missions insert the written info like story, weapons, vehicles, etc. You are reading all the info but you get to interact with it. For instance I can read a manual pg 88 about the megaBlasterX able to hold 100 shots, which do xxx damage, best used against yyy. I would rather have my player given the weapon in a 3/4 screen format. The player can target shoot at things (maybe showing accuracy % for fun) while the info is shown on the other side. It would have different views of the weapon, info to click on and a short commentary.

It would be a great format in the event that the game is updated or MODs released. It is a pain in the ass to read a 20 page text file added to an update. If the help file was updated all of your info would be in one place and current. MOD'ers could use the template to easily release there info. You would then not have your original manual (lost first day), update #1 help, update #2 help, Ninja999MOD help, SuperSkiLuciusMOD help, etc.

Just my opinion though.
 
Like they say " when all esle fails read the directions" I never read the manuals that come with a game, I do however read then that come with audio applications and graphics programs.(by the way any-1 actually read the photoshop manual that came with it if you actually bought it ? It read like a damm french instruction set to build a Bomb or something) The reason i think most people dont read game manuals is because most gamers can probally figure out a game in a few hours of playing. So what would be more fun, sitting and playing a game for a few hours and learning it, or sitting on the crapper reading a game manual ? :sex: for the DEV team
 
RedSpider(Real) said:
If you intend to make it useful, provide an explination of every possible variable you can set in clientprefs.cs or what have you, so people can fine tune their configs.
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That and lots of art and stories like the book that came with Starsiege.
 
Right at the beginning of the manual, there should be a 2-3 page section that's titled "So you want to jump right into the game right now, here are the basic controls and movement techniques."

Well, maybe that wouldn't be the title, but you get the idea.
 
2 things I like about Manuals..

Quick Install/Setup Guide - All important info a person installing might need.

Quick Card - Showing Keyboard layout.

And it could be on the back of the Quick Card, the chat menu. That was awesome, I spent lots of time reviewing that, my wife even quizzed me on it.

I did read through the Tribes 2 manual a few times. And religously looked over the Chat menu/Keyboard layout card for the first few weeks. :)
 
I spent all of Christmas 98 (eve + day) reading the original Tribes manual while at the relatives.


It had art. It had story. It had tips, like the "go slow to sneak past motion turrets" thing.











... and the Xcom strat guide, I carried it like a babtist in the congo.
 
I like most of the suggestions listed so far. I can definitely list one that erks me to no end. When they don't even include a manual (in the printed form) and proceed to make a 200 page .pdf file (or .txt file - even worse) that I have to print out myself if I want to read it. I am sure there is this cost savings reason behind all this but dammit it makes me mad.

I did however read both Tribes Manuals and the Planetside Manual prior to playing.
 
Colosus said:
I like manuals to have a rich backstory, lots of artwork, etc. I usually read through them while I'm installing the game or sitting on the toilet. :-D
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Agree.

KillerONE said:
Quick Card - Showing Keyboard layout.
Click to expand...

Very good feature, especially for beginners.

My favorite manual would have to be the Diablo 1 manual. Once you got into the game details, it was written like a history by someone from the game world. Instead of just the cut & dry description of monsters, spells, etc. each item had a backstory to it. The manual also had incredible illustrations.
 
Something about the Starcraft manual got me to read the entire thing, and it was pretty big too. I won't read it if it's a PDF, at least the story part. I hate reading stuff on the computer. However... you're still making that special edition with the FULL Starsiege backstory in a big, colorful manual, right? ;)
 
You have to include a manual - otherwise we wouldn't be able to yell RTFM at anyone :D

If I like a game I'll read the manual. I usually thumb through them while the game is installing. They're nice and make me feel better about dropping $50 on a game, but they generally collect dust or hit the trash within a day or two.

Voice bind reference = yes
keyboard guide = yes

Maybe even put a crease in the cards so you can fold them and they'll stand up on their own.
 
I had a nice long post typed up, then I lost my connection the site.

To sum up what I had before:
1. Paper is Best.
2. Backstory is awesome.
3. If a PDF means we can have more info, than go PDF.
4. I like blizzard Manuals and the T1 manual.
Fling :D
 
mechwarrior2 + its addon The Legacy Of The Ghost Bear had wonderful background stories.

And those old Ultima-games too..aww those were the days..
 
Like I said in the other thread, I have read all of blizzards manuals. Its not because I go out of the way either. Their manuals are so colorful, interesting, and artistic that they just draw me in. Normally I just have the manual sitting on my desk next to the computer, and I poke my nose in it whenever there is a map load or whenever there is a break in the action. With Blizzard manuals I found myself thoroughly engrossed to the point where I would physically stop playing to read the manual without even realizing it [begin rant]IMHO that is why blizzard is so popular. Their brand of entertainment is so engrossing that you dont even realize you are doing it. Their games are like movies, they are an escape. Its a breath of fresh air from other games which all seem to try and make you be intense about playing the game. When I play games on a pub, I dont want to be intense. I dont want to worry about who capped which flag or which position to play so the team "wins". I just want to have a good time doing something fun, and if the team benefits from that its all the better[/rant]. I know more about Arcturus Mengsk and the Terran Dominion than I probably know about all other game's backstory's I own combined. It really makes the gameplay experience more involving and makes the single player seem more significant.

I know you have people writing backstory for the game, so why not print it in a manual? I'd be willing to pay five dollars more for a Blizzard style box (with a good manual, posters, and interesting art included) then for a bland T2 style box with a manual that looks like it was printed on D-day.

But on the other hand, I wouldnt pay 20 dollars more for a collectors edition if I was given the choice. So go figure :shrug: (I think that has more to do with the fact that I'm given the choice between spending more money and less money though. But for some reason I dont mind being forced to pay more money for a game)
 
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