List of games that don't come with manuals when bought brand new

[Rickstilwell1]

Since we have the topic of manuals not coming with games anymore, here I'll make a list using posts from people to fill it out. It will be for both old and new games. If the game has something that fills in for the manual, such as a front insert for PS1 or a control sheet those will be specified separately.

Make sure you recall these statements from buying the game new or from seeing them in their sealed package as I did with Muncher which came in a generic Bally blister pack.

So far I have:

Bally Astrocade
Muncher

Palm OS
Palmpak Games
Rayman

Xbox 360
Alice Madness Returns
Earth Defense Force: Insect Armageddon
Madden 12
Mortal Kombat
NHL 12
Xbox Live Arcade Compilation Disc

[Snapple]

Alright.

All EA Sports games starting with this year. They made a big hullabaloo about them introducing "in-game manuals" to replace paper ones.

The in-game manuals suck, btw. They're not very detailed.

[T2KFreeker]

The new Mortal Kombat for the XBOX 360 has in game move lists and comes with a bunch of DLC and the like. No manual though. I'm sure the PS3 version will be the same, but I haven't seen said release to know for sure.

[Rickstilwell1]

The new Mortal Kombat for the XBOX 360 has in game move lists and comes with a bunch of DLC and the like. No manual though. I'm sure the PS3 version will be the same, but I haven't seen said release to know for sure.

What's the full title just so I don't get confused with any of the other Mortal Kombats?

EA sports games... be specific. Which ones came out this year and don't have manuals?

[Cryomancer]

Earth Defense Force insect Armageddon for 360. PS3 version supposedly comes with one. You can download a version from their website.

[Rickstilwell1]

There is also Mortal Kombat Best Buy Exclusive, and Mortal Kombat Tournament Edition for Xbox 360. Are those versions also without manual?

[Vectorman0]

Alice Madness Returns (360) comes with a warranty/health/XBL insert that mentions the manual is on the disc

[Kitsune Sniper]

This list should not include PC games, by the way.

... Many haven't included printed manuals in close to ten years. :(

Edit: Technically, doesn't Parappa The Rapper have no manual? I mean, it has a poster which has the instructions to play the game, but it's not a proper manual.

[Vectorman0]

Edit: Technically, doesn't Parappa The Rapper have no manual? I mean, it has a poster which has the instructions to play the game, but it's not a proper manual.

That depends on how we define a manual. I think "the instructions to play the game" is enough to be considered a "manual", regardless of how it is presented.

Cruis'n USA also has a poster manual, and I assume there are a bunch more like this.

EDIT: I sort of take back my original comment. If basic "instructions to play the game" were printed on the back of a box, or on the backside of an insert inside a clear game case, I'm not sure if I would call that a manual. I think of a manual as a separate piece from the box.

[SparTonberry]

I saw someone (maybe even on this forum) selling a manual for EVO for SNES that appeared to be a poster. Is that right?
I know Momotarou Densetsu and Mother are both Famicom games with poster-manuals.

I'm guessing we should still consider a poster-style manual to be a manual?

[Snapple]

EA sports games... be specific. Which ones came out this year and don't have manuals?

I refuse!

Well, actually I don't play every sports game so I can't 100% confirm which one was the first to stop using the manual.

I know NCAA Football and Madden don't have them. And every EA Sports game that has come out since NCAA came out won't have a paper manual. But I don't know if NCAA was the first.

[PapaStu]

This list should not include PC games, by the way.

... Many haven't included printed manuals in close to ten years. :(

Edit: Technically, doesn't Parappa The Rapper have no manual? I mean, it has a poster which has the instructions to play the game, but it's not a proper manual.


Then you need to toss out the early Jak & Daxter games, as they are poster map/manual things as well.

It's a manual, it tells you how to play and what to do. They just gave you an additional reason to pull it out of the case and look at/use it.

[Kitsune Sniper]

Then you need to toss out the early Jak & Daxter games, as they are poster map/manual things as well.

It's a manual, it tells you how to play and what to do. They just gave you an additional reason to pull it out of the case and look at/use it.

But it's not a book, that's my point. :P

[Lady Jaye]

Lego Star Wars III doesn't have a manual -- only has a control diagram and that's it.

That's on the 360, and I suppose it's like that on the other platforms (at least on the Wii and PS3)?

[Rickstilwell1]

This list should not include PC games, by the way.

... Many haven't included printed manuals in close to ten years. :(

Edit: Technically, doesn't Parappa The Rapper have no manual? I mean, it has a poster which has the instructions to play the game, but it's not a proper manual.

I would say that counts. Ratchet & Clank for PS2 has the same kind of manual, and Bignose Freaks Out for NES also has a poster type manual. Also Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D's manual is the fold open type. They all count in my opinion.

I am asking for only games that have no instructions on a piece of paper whatsoever.

And go ahead and list PC games too because some still have manuals and some don't.

All I am going to do is check down the list and update my OP to include the new additions.

[TheGam3r]

Nhl 12

[metarog]

Not sure if this counts since they are games for the Palm OS but Rayman and the Palmpak Games card do not come with a manual only the warranty and licensing info.

[Rickstilwell1]

Not sure if this counts since they are games for the Palm OS but Rayman and the Palmpak Games card do not come with a manual only the warranty and licensing info.

As long as it's physical, it counts

[CelticJobber]

The new Mortal Kombat for the XBOX 360 has in game move lists and comes with a bunch of DLC and the like. No manual though. I'm sure the PS3 version will be the same, but I haven't seen said release to know for sure.

Yeah, the PS3 version is also without an instruction manual.

[jonebone]

That depends on how we define a manual. I think "the instructions to play the game" is enough to be considered a "manual", regardless of how it is presented.

Cruis'n USA also has a poster manual, and I assume there are a bunch more like this.

EDIT: I sort of take back my original comment. If basic "instructions to play the game" were printed on the back of a box, or on the backside of an insert inside a clear game case, I'm not sure if I would call that a manual. I think of a manual as a separate piece from the box.

I'm going to have to check my collection now, I own both of those. I thought the PS1 Parappa the Rapper poster wasn't a set of instructions at all? I'm not sure.

As for Cruis'n USA, I've had that since childhood and they merely folded the instructions to appear as a real fold-out map (since you are cruising the USA). Those are definitely legit.

Also, I made the manual thread referenced in the OP. And the game that made me notice this was Madden 12, so please add that to the list.

[segagamer]

Neither Top Spin 4 nor Virtua Tennis 4 (both for 360) have the full instruction manual, but instead a quick start guide to get you started with the games. I was able to download the full manual for TS4 but could not get the VT4 full manual to download. Seems the link SEGA provided is not valid.

[savageone]

Gears of War 3 (normal edition) comes with a sticker sheet and a pamphlet for warranty and brief controls explanation.

On the other hand 360 games don't seem to be coming in those eco-friendly DVD cases anymore.

I wonder if this is only for certain new games or if it's the new standard.

[portnoyd]

Here's what you ask:

When you open it up, does it have nothing but the disc and other materials that do not reference the game directly?

Then it has no manual. Poster/maps and control cards are the manuals. They instruct you on gameplay. They are the manual, period.

[PapaStu]

I'm going to have to check my collection now, I own both of those. I thought the PS1 Parappa the Rapper poster wasn't a set of instructions at all? I'm not sure.


Flip it over. One side poster, other side instructions. Trust me.

[Rickstilwell1]

I took Lego Star Wars III off the list. Control diagram specific for the game = manual filler.

[The 1 2 P]

Gears of War 3 (normal edition) comes with a sticker sheet and a pamphlet for warranty and brief controls explanation.

I was very surprised by this considering how nice the Gears of War 1 and 2 manuals were. But this thing was worse than Activision's COD manuals. This wasn't even 8 pages, it was essencially a front and back cover of a manual with a controller diagram.


On the other hand 360 games don't seem to be coming in those eco-friendly DVD cases anymore.

I wonder if this is only for certain new games or if it's the new standard.

I hope this continues. I hate those other cases and they make owning used games even more of a risk.