I always loved the booklets when I was a kid just as a way to go back into the world even when I wasn't playing the game. This was also the main reason I liked to get strategy guides as a kid. I enjoyed reading some of the jokes and random information they would put into some of the booklets. I remember sneaking games from home to elementary school just to look through the pictures in the booklet at times.

I will say that now, I don't really care that much about the booklets. That could just be because they don't seem to have as much in them, though. I'll still look through the booklet immediately after getting a game, but I don't really think about it when there is no booklet.