My recent acquisition of Starcraft 2 prompted me to go and read through some of my old Blizzard instruction manuals. Blizzard has always put an emphasis on back story and lore surrounding their games, and it makes for some pretty decent reading. Manuals have shrunk at a rapid pace over the past few years, and now only offer the most basic of instructions, with a paragraph dedicated to the story (if you're lucky). Now it seems even Blizzard has caught on, as the SC2 manual is little more than a rundown of the installation, game modes, and controls.
I remember as a kid taking some of my NES game manuals to school, reading them on breaks and on the bus. I also remember fondly thumbing through my manuals for Civilization 2, Sim City 2000, etc for fun. These manuals are huge, informative, and a joy to read. In fact they are all on my bookshelf now, as I have kept them (along with the original games) all these years.
I know from a business standpoint it's much easier to just put the information on the disc, or present it in some other way. But I really do miss big manuals packed with information and back story. Absolutely one of those relics from the good old days that's an exception rather than the rule now.
