Strategy guide
Encyclopedia
Strategy guides are instruction books that contain hints or complete solutions to specific video games. The line between strategy guides and walkthroughs
is somewhat blurred, with the former often containing or being written around the latter. Strategy guides are often published in print, both in book form and also as articles within video game magazines. In cases of exceptionally popular game titles, guides may be sold through more mainstream publication channels, such as bookstores or even newsstands. Some publishers also sell E-Book
versions on their websites.
Strategy guides marketed as "official" are written by game distributors themselves or licensed to a specialty publishing house; Prima Games
(a division of Random House
) and BradyGames (a division of Pearson Education
) specialize in writing official guides for various companies. There are also a number of publishers who make unlicensed, "unofficial" strategy guides, and many of today's mainstream publishers began by making such guides.
, for instance, included some misplaced item locations and a slightly different map, which made some directions impossible to follow. BradyGames rectifies such mistakes by offering free errata pages for download from their website
.
Strategy guides are sometimes published before the game itself is published. This can be risky because there is always the chance that a game will end up not being released. In January 2001
, Prima published a guide (ISBN 0-7615-3125-4) for the Dreamcast version of Half-Life, which was canceled late in development when Sega
discontinued the console
.
and IGN FAQs
.
The increasing availability of free online FAQs and walkthroughs has taken away some of the demand for commercial strategy guides, although there is still a large market for them. Print guides often feature extensive picture-by-picture walkthroughs, maps, and game art, none of which is possible in the plain-text works hosted by prominent sites such as GameFAQs
. Some newer sites allow strategy guides to be hosted in formats that allow pictures and videos, which further undercuts the advantages of print strategy guides.
Some publishers have tried combining their printed books with the Internet
. In 2000
, the Final Fantasy IX Official Strategy Guide
was published by BradyGames, but much of the information was contained on Square's PlayOnline
website. This seemed like a good way to promote PlayOnline, while creating a guide that would have updatable content, but it was widely panned. Players saw no need of buying a book if a significant part of the content was online; and there was no point paying for online content from one site, if it was available for free on another site. As a result, Square abandoned the online strategy guide concept and released complete printed guides for future games.
The rise of video-sharing sites such as YouTube
has given rise to video walkthroughs using programs such as Fraps
allowing players to more easily mirror the strategies being described.
they referred to characters with terms such as "The Dinosaur" and "The Octopus" instead of their names.
Games journalist and guide writer Alan Emrich
has severely criticized recent strategy guides for:
The faults, he says, are mainly caused by the game publishers' and guide publishers' haste to get their products on to the market.
Strategy guide
Strategy guides are instruction books that contain hints or complete solutions to specific video games. The line between strategy guides and walkthroughs is somewhat blurred, with the former often containing or being written around the latter. Strategy guides are often published in print, both in...
is somewhat blurred, with the former often containing or being written around the latter. Strategy guides are often published in print, both in book form and also as articles within video game magazines. In cases of exceptionally popular game titles, guides may be sold through more mainstream publication channels, such as bookstores or even newsstands. Some publishers also sell E-Book
E-book
An electronic book is a book-length publication in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, and produced on, published through, and readable on computers or other electronic devices. Sometimes the equivalent of a conventional printed book, e-books can also be born digital...
versions on their websites.
Strategy guides marketed as "official" are written by game distributors themselves or licensed to a specialty publishing house; Prima Games
Prima Games
Prima Games, a division of Random House, is the largest publishing company of video game strategy guides in the United States. It is an imprint of the Random House Information Group, based in Roseville, California...
(a division of Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
) and BradyGames (a division of Pearson Education
Pearson Education
Pearson Education is an international educational publishing and technology company providing textbooks and other educational material, such as multimedia learning tools...
) specialize in writing official guides for various companies. There are also a number of publishers who make unlicensed, "unofficial" strategy guides, and many of today's mainstream publishers began by making such guides.
Typical contents
The contents of a strategy guide varies between game genres. Typically, the guides contain:- Detailed gameplayGameplayGameplay is the specific way in which players interact with a game, and in particular with video games. Gameplay is the pattern defined through the game rules, connection between player and the game, challenges and overcoming them, plot and player's connection with it...
information, for example, maneuvers that are not detailed in the manual. - Complete maps of the game, which show the placement of all items (including hidden and hard-to-find ones).
- Detailed instructions for specific locations on how to proceed from there.
- Explanations of puzzles.
- Details of enemies, including techniques on defeating individual enemies (especially bossesBoss (video games)A boss is an enemy-based challenge which is found in video games. A fight with a boss character is commonly referred to as a boss battle or boss fight...
), the segment for minor enemies is commonly referred to as a bestiaryBestiaryA bestiary, or Bestiarum vocabulum is a compendium of beasts. Bestiaries were made popular in the Middle Ages in illustrated volumes that described various animals, birds and even rocks. The natural history and illustration of each beast was usually accompanied by a moral lesson...
. - Checklist of collectible items.
- Cheats and game editing, although this has been less common in official guides.
- Walkthroughs to help the player complete levels.
- Advice on tactics and strategies for use in multi-player (games with multi-player only)
Publishing before game release
In order to be released at the same time as the game, commercial strategy guides are often based on a pre-release version of the game, rather than the final retail version; BradyGames' guide for Grand Theft Auto: San AndreasGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a 2004 open world action video game developed by British games developer Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...
, for instance, included some misplaced item locations and a slightly different map, which made some directions impossible to follow. BradyGames rectifies such mistakes by offering free errata pages for download from their website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
.
Strategy guides are sometimes published before the game itself is published. This can be risky because there is always the chance that a game will end up not being released. In January 2001
2001 in video gaming
-Events:* Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts John Carmack of id Software to the AIAS Hall of Fame...
, Prima published a guide (ISBN 0-7615-3125-4) for the Dreamcast version of Half-Life, which was canceled late in development when Sega
Sega
, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...
discontinued the console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
.
Online guides
Online strategy guides and FAQs are hosted at sites such as GameFAQsGameFAQs
GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...
and IGN FAQs
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
.
The increasing availability of free online FAQs and walkthroughs has taken away some of the demand for commercial strategy guides, although there is still a large market for them. Print guides often feature extensive picture-by-picture walkthroughs, maps, and game art, none of which is possible in the plain-text works hosted by prominent sites such as GameFAQs
GameFAQs
GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...
. Some newer sites allow strategy guides to be hosted in formats that allow pictures and videos, which further undercuts the advantages of print strategy guides.
Some publishers have tried combining their printed books with the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. In 2000
2000 in video gaming
-Events:* May 11–13 — 6th annual Electronic Entertainment Expo ; the 3rd annual Game Critics Awards for the Best of E³* June 26 — International Game Developers Association renamed from Computer Game Developers Association...
, the Final Fantasy IX Official Strategy Guide
Final Fantasy IX
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth title in the Final Fantasy series. The game introduced new features to the series like the 'Active Time Event', 'Mognet' and a unique equipment and skill system.Final Fantasy IXs...
was published by BradyGames, but much of the information was contained on Square's PlayOnline
PlayOnline
PlayOnline is an online gaming service created by Square Co. , and is used as a hub for many of the online PC, PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360 games the company publishes. Currently, the only game supported by the service is Final Fantasy XI...
website. This seemed like a good way to promote PlayOnline, while creating a guide that would have updatable content, but it was widely panned. Players saw no need of buying a book if a significant part of the content was online; and there was no point paying for online content from one site, if it was available for free on another site. As a result, Square abandoned the online strategy guide concept and released complete printed guides for future games.
The rise of video-sharing sites such as YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
has given rise to video walkthroughs using programs such as Fraps
Fraps
Fraps is a benchmarking, screen capture, and real-time video capture utility for DirectX and OpenGL applications. It is commonly used to determine a computer's performance with a game, as well as record gaming footage...
allowing players to more easily mirror the strategies being described.
Source mistakes
Some companies will, at times, make mistakes in the book about the game itself, such as stating that "Character A" has a relationship with "Character B", despite there being no relationship. In a strategy guide for Diddy Kong RacingDiddy Kong Racing
Diddy Kong Racing is a 1997 racing game for the Nintendo 64 developed by Rareware. 800,000 copies were ordered in the two weeks before Christmas 1997, making it the fastest selling video game at the time, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. It is the first game to spin off from the...
they referred to characters with terms such as "The Dinosaur" and "The Octopus" instead of their names.
Games journalist and guide writer Alan Emrich
Alan Emrich
Alan Emrich is best known as a writer about and designer of computer games, who coined the term "4X", contributed to the design of Master of Orion and Master of Orion 3, and wrote strategy guides for video games. Before the rise of computer games Emrich wrote about and designed board games and...
has severely criticized recent strategy guides for:
- Containing only facts which should have been in the game manual, e.g. about the user interfaceUser interfaceThe user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
. - Failing to teach users how to improve their play.
- Failing to provide information which helps them to makes decisions, e.g. about the capabilities and costs of units and buildings.
- Being inaccurate, often because the developers have tweaked the game during the publication lead timeLead timeA lead time is the latency between the initiation and execution of a process. For example, the lead time between the placement of an order and delivery of a new car from a manufacturer may be anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months...
.
The faults, he says, are mainly caused by the game publishers' and guide publishers' haste to get their products on to the market.