Seth Robison Guest Contributor	Now Playing: GTA: Vice City (PS2), Metroid Fusion (GC), Warcraft III (PC), Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land (GBA).

Manual Gamer

Under the shrink-wrap, inside the game case, opposite the circle of laser-etched plastic, there lies a true work of art. Behind the subscription cards, the registration cards, and the cautionary words about projection screen burn-in, there is a key that unlocks a new world: The game's instruction manual.

What's that, a dragon?

The manual reflected the complexity of the game. Some stretched on for several pages, while others were printed on one side of a card. However, as game technology developed, the instruction manual's importance grew, and then shrank.

There are those who would argue that learning to play the game on one's own without reading the manual is "more fun." Is ramming your head into a wall to drive in a nail more fun than using a hammer? The instruction manual is, first and foremost, a tool. There is very little information within its pages that is not helpful. Figuring out that the B button causes the character to jump is not a big accomplishment. Knowing, though, that pushing down, left, and the B button to execute a sliding attack might not be quite so obvious. Anyway, the first few moments after loading up your latest game are crucial to your long-term enjoyment of it. Would you rather have fun from the get-go or get aggravated at losing repeatedly, maybe because you aren't familiar with one of the key mechanics?

"Lance, what the hell are we doing here?" "Shut up and keep shooting, Bill."

Raiden gets help from the in-game tutorial.

With just a few paragraphs and a little art, a gamer could gain insight into the motivation of the character he or she would be playing as during the game. Suddenly the characters were no longer just running and shooting in Contra, they were the last soldiers left to save the Earth from the alien menace known as Red Falcon. There is a princess/fortune/lunch waiting for me in the castle/dungeon/malt shop? Now we know why we're supposed to be fighting the local gangs or jumping on turtles' heads.

Today, with the power of the latest game systems, instruction manuals have hit a crossroads, as their prospects are starting dim. With so much graphical and sound power, games can introduce themselves with amazing CG intros and recorded speech. With expanded memory capabilities games can include tutorial modes and onscreen controller references. Nowadays games without built-in instructions suffer as the game rental and resale markets flourish and the original printed manuals fall through the cracks in the process.

The manuals face competition too. There's an ever-increasing market for strategy guides, full sized and packed with all the kinds of information. Information not needed or even wanted in the packaged manuals flourishes on store shelves next to games. The Internet also plays an increasingly large part in the gaming world. Instant access to game data is available in a way never imagined in the days of the Atari 2600.

For the meantime, instruction manuals hold their faithful place--the perfect complement to the gaming experience. Will there be a day when the instruction manual is a thing of the past? Only time will tell.