Have you ever found notes in game manuals?

[Hardcore]

While being collectars, you want your game/case/manual. For those of you that serious, whilst looking through manuals, have you ever found that someone along the way has put notes in any of those manuals?

I don't collect in that manner, but I remember an NES game that I rented once had passwords in the manual.

[8bitgamer]

Yeah, mostly passwords. Sometimes, and this is what I prefer, there will be a little folded piece of paper with passwords--that way the manual doesn't get marked up.

[aclbandit]

Yeah, mostly passwords. Sometimes, and this is what I prefer, there will be a little folded piece of paper with passwords--that way the manual doesn't get marked up.

I recently picked up a Game Genie CodeBook that had the Konami Code on a piece of notecard inside. It had extra steps at the end, though, which made me smile a bit.

[Sniderman]

On occassion I've found some cheat codes scrawled on the last page of a manual. The most bizaare thing I found in a game manual was a Polaroid taken at the local strip joint. Many boobies. :eek 2:

[Swamperon]

On occassion I've found some cheat codes scrawled on the last page of a manual. The most bizaare thing I found in a game manual was a Polaroid taken at the local strip joint. Many boobies. :eek 2:

Hahaha, what an odd place to hide such a thing! But no I've never found anything, once found something illegible written in pencil on the inside of a case. Rubbed it out!

[c0ldb33r]

The most bizaare thing I found in a game manual was a Polaroid taken at the local strip joint. Many boobies. :eek 2:
hilarious

[DigitalSpace]

Here's the oddest thing I've ever seen written inside of a manual: in my Wrecking Crew manual, someone wrote down a list of Vs. series games in all caps on the second of the three memo pages, and he/she used dashes instead of spaces. The list:

VS-DUCK-HUNT
VS-HOGANS-ALLEY
VS-WRECKING-CREW
VS-COMMANDO
VS-DONKEY-KONG-3
VS-CLU-CLU-LAND
VS-WILD-GUNMAN
VS-SUPER-MARIO-BROS
VS-KUNG-FU
VS-GUMSHOE

I wonder about the story behind that.

Also, I have a manual for the SNES version of Zombies Ate My Neighbors with a well-used "Password Log" page.

[GM80]

Found a folded-up sheet of graph paper in a Metroid manual once. It had an incredible hand-drawn map of the entire game world complete with symbols, legend, and notes. Apparently, the owner created it as he went along so he didn't get lost.

It was so awesome, I kept it.

Along similar lines, I found a nice hardback "diary" kept by someone as they played through the original Starflight (Genesis), from the perspective of the character as a sort of "captain's log." Lots of details about "encountered such and such today" and "had this happen to my ship."

Kept that one, too.

:)

[c0ldb33r]

Found a folded-up sheet of graph paper in a Metroid manual once. It had an incredible hand-drawn map of the entire game world complete with symbols, legend, and notes. Apparently, the owner created it as he went along so he didn't get lost.

It was so awesome, I kept it.
Could you scan it or snap a pic?

[shopkins]

I find those pretty often. Usually it's passwords, sometimes codes and sometimes weirder things that are apparently hints but are harder to make out. I used to write in them myself when I would rent an NES or SNES game every weekend, so there's a chance that someone here might actually be finding my notes. Not my strip club pictures, though. I hid those in a different place.

[HYB]

Some NES games have had passwords and stuff at the last pages. I really should check the manuals again.

[Mobius]

I've come across some high scores/best times/etc. Most recently, though, I bought Christmas NiGHTS and it had a receipt in it. Someone bought three copies for 99 cents each at Blockbuster back when it originally came out. Meanwhile, 13 years later, I paid about $20 for one copy. Bah.

[GM80]

Could you scan it or snap a pic?

Be glad to, if I can find it. Moved once since then, and I don't recall specifically seeing it after that. I'll take a peek this weekend.

[DDCecil]

One of my favorite finds in a manual was a Ghost and Goblins NES manual with stuff like Satan and a few other "Demon" words crossed out with red sharpie.

[Famidrive-16]

Haven't really gone through most of them, but one NES manual I had from a used place had "Al's Hardware" and a phone number written on the last page. Okay...

[The 1 2 P]

Not only have I found passwords and other stuff written in th backs of manuals but I've also seen stuff written in strategy guides. But the most unusual was a passcode sticker adhered to the back of my Double Dragon 2 Gameboy cart.

[RASK1904]

My Star Tropics manual has the note in it. It's kinda cool you add water and a secret message apears! Ooooooh.

But yes some of my manuals have writing in them/codes. I knda like it. I really don't use them. I just think it's good.

On a side note I have some of those Snes game cover things with mario world stickers that say "this game belongs to". I wrote my name there. I now theres some old stickers that go over the Nes controllers and I think the gameboy. But these are totally off topic sorry.

[Hitman Tyler]

I have never have anything written in my game manuals, that I buy. Maybe this is because I check for this every time I buy a game. :)
I once by accident wrote in pen in my Mortal Kombat Manuals (PS2) My Kombat Password. :(

[grolt]

I've encountered this a number of times. A few notables:

-In California Games on the SMS, someone cut out the girl from the cover and the front manual. Perv.

-In Phantasy Star, there was about 10 pages of graph paper with drawings of all the dungeons. It really came in handy. Better, though, was the note left at the end of the manual. The person wrote the day and date they completed the game, as well as their impressions on finally beating it after playing so long. It was actually quite touching.

-I've also had a lot of people color in the manuals, since they are typically only black and white.

As a collector I'm often a little miffed when I see that kind of stuff done to the packaging, but at the same time it's always fun to see stuff like that. I guess we're all voyeurs.

[SparTonberry]

I bought a complete copy of Claymates for SNES, only to find someone had cut out most of the character art in the manual.

[jcalder8]

I haven't found anything interesting in manuals before, but I know that I have seen passwords written in them.

As a collector I like to have that kind of stuff in there because it shows that it was played and enjoyed.

[NayusDante]

At one of the fleas that I go to, there's a little computer shop, mostly in the 90s hardware business. For the longest time, I saw a Daggerfall box there, and it was full of manuals. Every time I went by, I'd pick it up and look at it, and they'd tell me the game wasn't there. Eventually, I decided that I wanted to eventually get Daggerfall, and having the box, manual, and guide would be nice. I went and surprised them by asking "how much for the box of manuals." $3 later, I had lots of old PC game manuals, the most interesting of which was for "Qin." That game was actually in there, but I don't get into those adventure games as much anymore. While not a "manual" per se, the book was supposedly included with the game and it was blank. Like the Myst journal, I guess you were supposed to take notes on the game (there was one of those in there too, but I think it was blank).

Apparently, whoever owned the stuff before was like me and more interested in Daggerfall. It's about a 150 page "adventure log" book, and about 30 pages are Daggerfall notes. Interspersed are references to CompUServe, and random numbers being added up. The Daggerfall notes abruptly end with a shopping list, adding up the prices for extension cords, shovels, "PVC storage," "misc drill bits," and so on. Turn the book upside-down and start reading from the end, and there's Riven notes, mostly just the number system and a drawing of a lever.

[Cinder6]

In my Legend of Zelda manual, there's a drawing of a Swastika. Oh wait, that's something Nintendo put in...

Okay, seriously though, I've not encountered any of the more interesting stuff you guys have. Just passwords and the like. I think it'd be fun to see what somebody wrote about Myst, though :)

[joshnickerson]

When I was a kid, I used to write in my manuals all the time. My Mario 2 and 3 manuals were filled with notes, such as how to defeat certain enemies and bosses, where secrets were. I even drew in missing enemies and information, such as the Hammer Bros suit. I also tended to take my black and white NES and GB manuals and color them with some art markers I had.

Yeah, I was a strange and lonely little kid...