Official gaming guides are they worth it?

[Chris]

I've always wondered If the Official Gaming Guides were worth it?
What do they offer? Do they actually help you with your game ? are they worth the money? Do they take the fun out of the games?
Anyways, I was just wondering. What do you think ?
:lovers: :shoot: :weep: :radred: :sweatdrop :grumble: :rock: :screwy: :banme

[Shlup]

I would rather rely on gaming guides that are painstakingly made by hardcore fans, especially since they often include information you can find directly in the official guides.

[Dingo Jellybean]

I would rather rely on gaming guides that are painstakingly made by hardcore fans, especially since they often include information you can find directly in the official guides.

Thanks for the endorsement.

But most authors create their lists such as monsters/items/magic, etc. off from Brady Guides. However, the actual walkthrough is unique. $15 for a guide is a bit steep, I think $10 is the maximum threshold for a price of a guide. Only because of the actual visualization.

Besides, Brady Games often never checks their guides for accuracy, so I never rely on them. But for a game like GT4, which will come with a guide, it's worth it because there's so much to do for that game. Same thing for GTA:SA.

[Lindy]

Fighting game guides I like for the move lists, or hints on buffering, like the SC2 guide, because I find the GameFAQs move list guides horribly hard to read.

The general content of the guide is a load of rubbish, but the move lists are all correct and there easy to read.

Plus it was only £4.99

[Xander]

I like to get the FF and Kingdom Hearts guides, because they are so cute. ^_^ I like the artwork in them (esp FFX's). I don't use them that much for the game and if I do it's for my second playthrough or something, or extra stuff. But usually I can find stuff out online. I also find them useful for general reference. But mostly just cos I like to collect FF stuff =)

[UltimateSpamGrover]

But usually I can find stuff out online.

Dont get strategy guides, if you can find most of the stuff online

[Del Murder]

I never pay for what I can get for free.

[Erdrick Holmes]

I see Brady and Primagames making tons of walkthroughs to fighting games suchs a Soul Calibur 2 and Guilty Gear X 2. AMATURES WRITE THAT CRAP.

[escobert]

I usually buy em just because i liek to read em and stuff when I'm bored. Also I like to look at the art. *is good at waisting money*

[edczxcvbnm]

I don't get guides too often. Only for games I really really really like. I have the Chrono Trigger, Chrono Cross, Xenosaga(I want gears but I am not paying those ebay prices), Legend of Mana(well worth it) and a few others(I got a lot for free because I use to work at gamestop). I have these guides for collection purposes and I look through them for specific things for the most part. I use my Cross guide EVERY time I play through the game because I get to some point and I know what I have to do next but I always forget to talk to some guy. I don't want to scroll through 300 pages of just text to find that! Its a pain in my ass. On top of that I would have to get online, go to the site, pick out a guide from about 4-10 and look through it. I like the easy of flipping through pages.

I will probably pick of Tales of Symphonia sometime soon. It has a whole HELL of a lot to it that I don't want to go online all the time for(wonder chef, requirements for new skills, what is in item boxes, relationship points, alternate paths, sidequests). I find them nice if I really really like the game and want to do a lot of stuff. Obviously not everything will be right in the guide given how much information there are to some of these games but I think they do a good part for the most part(not prima though...they suck).

I love .hack but I am not buying the guides for those games because the sidequests are thrown in your face and its straight forward.

I don't buy them too often and when I do...I really don't use them that much. Like I said...mainly for collection purposes.

[White Raven]

I will probably pick of Tales of Symphonia sometime soon. It has a whole HELL of a lot to it that I don't want to go online all the time for(wonder chef, requirements for new skills, what is in item boxes, relationship points, alternate paths, sidequests). I find them nice if I really really like the game and want to do a lot of stuff. Obviously not everything will be right in the guide given how much information there are to some of these games but I think they do a good part for the most part(not prima though...they suck).

I highly reccomend getting the Tales of Symphonia srtagey guide. It has complete lists of everything and every sidequest. The only thing it doesn't have are maps of the dungeons, but that I probably for the best anyway.

I got the guide a week after the game got out, so I missed a whole bunch of stuff in the first half of the game. :(

[Breine]

I don't use guides. I think it spoils the game... Although I do own the official guide to Final Fantasy IX I bought it after playing the game through.

[Rainecloud]

I) They totally ruin the game (unless the game is stupidly and unfairly difficult).
II) As Del said, you can download guides for free which are probably better and more detailed than the official ones.

[Xander]

Dont get strategy guides, if you can find most of the stuff online

Did you read the rest of my post?


I like the artwork in them


just cos I like to collect FF stuff


And I like to have something real not something on a screen too. Okay? *moody*

[chu52]

If you get a good deal for them

[edczxcvbnm]

I highly reccomend getting the Tales of Symphonia srtagey guide. It has complete lists of everything and every sidequest. The only thing it doesn't have are maps of the dungeons, but that I probably for the best anyway.

I KNEW IT! I think I can get by without the dungon maps. Most of the dungons are really small except a few near the end. They just appear long because you have to run around and figure stuff out.

*will get this guide*

[Azure Chrysanthemum]

I like Game Guides, but I'm cheap so I usually just use Gamefaqs. I'll probably pick up Tales of Symphonia though, I know I probably missed a great deal, and I'm going through a second time so I can get it all this time.

[SeeDRankLou]

I find online games are very often but not always simply copied from Bradygames guides. Some of them are really good, extraordinarily more indepth and detailed than official guides, but how can you really know if it's going to be or not. For example, there are a lot of 100% In One Game guides for FFX-2 on the internet. There's also one in the Bradygames guide, and it has two flaws in it, one which would prevent you from getting 100%. These FAQs usually appear in list form, and almost every single one of these particular FAQs I've found on the internet *cough*including the one on this site*cough* are all listed in almost the exact same order and all have the exact same two mistakes. I thought that was rather funny. There is one on gamefaqs.com that is rather good, but again how can you know?

So it all depends on how much I plan on using a strategy guide if I need one. If I just need a quick reference, then I'll go online. But if I find myself needing one quite a bit, I'll buy it for the simple ease of flipping through pages rather than scanning a text file. And they have pictures, always a plus. I find the flaws in official guides miniscule at best and easy to compensate for. However, some of the more indepth secrets of some games are left out of some guides. I guess some secrets are just that secret.

[Trumpet Thief]

chaos: I don't ever need Gaming Guides. Those online guides are just as good, and they have exactly what I need, so, I just stick with those.

Rubedo: But, when I do get Gaming Guides, they are still pretty good. Yet in some cases (Legend of Dragoon), the Online Guides are better.

[Lord Chainsaw]

It all depends on the guide, really.

Some are horrendous like the Final Fantasy IX guide (go to Playonline.com for more details) and some are excellent like the Lunar and Lunar 2 guides.

If the guide is great, then by all means I would recommend purchasing it for a second playthrough of the game. The Lunar guides are by far the best strategy guides I've ever seen. They have everything from maps to funny captions written under in game screens to comics. And of course they have the number 1 most important thing ANY game guide should have: Boss HP.

I have the Final Fantasy X-2 guide and it's pretty bad. The Final Fantasy Official guides usually aren't that good. The X-2 guide completely skips the Bevelle Dungeon.

I usually like to go with unofficial guides. There's this one unofficial Final Fantasy VII guide by some guy named Casey Lowe that is extremely well done. It even came with a poster.

[Casey]

No, there not worth 20 bucks, when you can get a not so fancy one online for free. :thumb:

[Ryth]

I don't buy them anymore I use the Internet.

[Ouch!]

I've only ever purchased five guides. The first was FFVIII, which I purchased because it was the first Final Fantasy I'd ever played, let alone the first RPG I ever played.

The second I purchased was Majora's Mask, because it came with the set when you ordered the special gold edition cartridge.

The third I purchased was FFX because it was something like 50% off if you bought the game as well, so I figured why not?

The other two are the fall and spring editions of the FFXI guides. I like to have a lot of the stuff that it offers right at my finger tips. Being able to look up a skillchain easily while others are too lazy to have a chart printed up comes in handy. I often end up finding those kind of thing even when I play as a mage.

Also being able to look up any monster for weaknesses and whatnot comes in handy. They've got some crazy stuff in there, for example: the bomb family is weak to fire. Nobody would have guessed that when they engaged a bomb.

As far as their usefulness, I try to only use them on a second playthrough. I like to do things myself the first time around, and then I'll go do everything right on my second. I haven't had a problem with the accuracy of the guides, though I have noticed that they leave little things out. Of course you always get hung up on the little things.

[Raistlin]

[color=limegreen]
Some are horrendous like the Final Fantasy IX guide (go to Playonline.com for more details) and some are excellent like the Lunar and Lunar 2 guides.

xD I know. A friend of mine bought the FF9 guide, and we all had a laugh out of it. Especially since the playonline.com had the FULL walkthrough and info, and the so-called "guide" was just copy/paste from that website, with a ton of stuff left out. "There's a bunch of stuff you can do here. Go to playonline.com to find out what!"


If the guide is great, then by all means I would recommend purchasing it for a second playthrough of the game. The Lunar guides are by far the best strategy guides I've ever seen. They have everything from maps to funny captions written under in game screens to comics. And of course they have the number 1 most important thing ANY game guide should have: Boss HP.
YES!!! I have a Lunar SSSC guide, and it is the only guide that I have that I still use to this day.


Official guides usually suck, especially the FF ones. The last FF guide I bought was also my first: FF7's. FF9's put me off official FF guides for good. For RPGs, usually the best and most complete info can be found from crazed fans at GameFAQs.

I am thinking about getting a Lunar EB guide, though. Especially if it's done by the same people who did SSSC's.

[-N-]

I haven't bought any guides, but if I'm stuck, I go to GameFAQs.

[Lord Chainsaw]

I am thinking about getting a Lunar EB guide, though. Especially if it's done by the same people who did SSSC's.

Oh believe me, you WANT the Lunar 2 guide.

Not only is it much longer than the SSC guide, but it also contains comics and an actual bookmarker. It has even more witty humor than the first. Even if you've already completed the game and need no help with it whatsoever it's still just a plain ol good time to look through.

[UltimateSpamGrover]

Did you read the rest of my post?

I did, but I ignored it XD

[Jolts]

I get the guide books for almost all my games. I like being able to check them every once in a while, so I don't miss anything. The "unoffical" guides are usually worth it, though, because they often give you secret information that the game makers don't want you to know, or want you to find for yourself (which is sometimes nearly impossible).

[SomethingBig]

Why purchase something you can get for free?

[Endless]

I don't need to print and bind the guides I buy, and gamefaqs is useful when I need an occasional information, but if I want a permanant guide, scrolling through text gets painful.

As for guide brands, I recommend the Ultimania guides, which unlike Brady and Prima, are the most in-depth and accurate guides made. The only drawback is that it's in Japanese. The Enterbrain guides (in Japanese too) are also pretty good. I own the Legend of Mana Ultimania guide and Enterbrain's Magical Vacation Complete Guide, and I don't regret these purchases. I got FF:CC and GS2:TLA guides mostly for the maps and data, and I'm getting FF:TA's to have all the data nearby and not have to read printed text or jump to gamefaqs any time I want to find where to get a specific item.

[SomethingBig]

Scrolling through text gets painful.
You can always just use the find command.