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Did anyone happen to pick this up when they bought the game? I think I'm getting it along with the game for Christmas, and I was wondering how you all felt about using guides with games. I'll only use it if I'm so stuck and confused that I can't do much else without it, like I usually do. Opinions?

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~TornadoOfSouls~

I would say it isn't totally worth it. This answer is probably way more than you wanted to hear, but anyways:

My experience with player guides is that they are less comprehensive compared to what you can get for free by frequenting forums like this one or places dedicated to free online guides/walkthroughs like gamefaqs.

Store bought guides for any game tend to just show you maps, item locations and reference tables. Unlike the online sources written by fans, printed guides don't talk a lot about strategy nor do they give you critique of different characters/spells/etc. I've also seen printed player guides sometimes miss extra hard to find secrets. Finally you can find more 'fun' information about obscurities/rumors from online sources. If you enjoy reading and learning more stuff about the game beyond what anyone would know from a first playthrough then you can't beat online guides.

One gripe I have with online guides is that they aren't always complete right away. So if you buy a game right when it comes out you'll probably only have access to a bare bones walkthrough for the first few weeks. This of course isn't a problem with FF4.

Another grip about online guides (although not so much for rpg guides) is that they have a very bad habit of giving you way more information than you need for a walkthough. e.g. every online guide would say something like "go into the next room, kill the guy, then open the door" when of course any player would kill the guy and open the door without consulting a guide (duh!). In this sense, printed guides are much nicer for "I'm stuck" helpers since they give you crystal clear maps and are better at focusing the text to the things that make you "stuck" in the first place (e.g., switches, keys, puzzles, etc.)

I still buy player's guides though if I can find a good price or if its for a game I really like. You just can't find maps from online sources and everything else about the printed guides is just so much nicer to look at. If I'm playing a game for the fifth time and I forget whether this boss is weak to fire or water it's much easier to flip to the page in the printed guide than search for for that one line plain text in 100k txt file.

This post has been edited by 1stclass on 23rd December 2005 21:32

If you were thinking that you were going to get a comprehensive guide to the Lunar Ruins, forget it. All it's got in there is a filler page telling you about how it has new events and stuff.

The only reason I got it was for the neat, clean amano art scans. That's it. Anything else you can get just as good or better online for free.

So unless you're an amano fan, I suggest saving the money for Final Fantasy V Advance.

Or Final Fantasy III DS, whatever.

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"Some fight for justice. Some fight for law . . .
. . .Cecil, what will you fight for?"
~KluYa

Theres ups and downs to everything, I just like having it for reference and looking at all the art, it's kind of neat. Plus, it gives me something to read.

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~TornadoOfSouls~

Quote (Ronin @ 23rd December 2005 19:42)

If you were thinking that you were going to get a comprehensive guide to the Lunar Ruins, forget it. All it's got in there is a filler page telling you about how it has new events and stuff.

Heh. That sucks.

In case it wasn't obvious, CoN is working on coverage for this game for the basics plus whatever we can manage to get for the new stuff. I don't know when or if it will be done, but hopefully it will fill some of the void. Just as an aside from the topic.

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"To create something great, you need the means to make a lot of really bad crap." - Kevin Kelly

Why aren't you shopping AmaCoN?

I flipped through it last time I was in the video game store. Ronin is correct.

If you need help with the regular game, it's fine. But there's nothing on the Bonus dungeon, the item lists are incomplete, and the guide's beastiary gives you the same info as the in-game beastiary, providing no help in completing it.

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"I had to write four novels before they let me write comic books."
-Brad Meltzer

Heh. on the Dawn of Souls Guides, they did have stuff on the bonus dungeons. Guess the guide people are slacking off.

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Dead Winter. A nice comic.

Most guides for single-player RPG games are a waste of time. Free walkthroughs and forums of nerds are more useful.

I would never buy a guide for FFIV. I'd only look at it to see if there's anything I disagree with, since I know this game by heart by now.

Quote (Electricbassguy @ 13th January 2006 02:23)

Most guides for single-player RPG games are a waste of time. Free walkthroughs and forums of nerds are more useful.

I would never buy a guide for FFIV. I'd only look at it to see if there's anything I disagree with, since I know this game by heart by now.

You know, anyone who has tons of knowledge and can back it up with proof is welcome to contribute to the site rather than just prattle about it.

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"To create something great, you need the means to make a lot of really bad crap." - Kevin Kelly

Why aren't you shopping AmaCoN?