Before the internet and its abundance of Wikis and GameFAQs, if you needed to know all the details about a certain video game, your best bet would be a strategy guide. Prima Games stood as one of the most recognized publishers of that market, offering books that contained maps, secret locations, tips, and cheat codes for hundreds of games, ever since it was founded in 1990. After an "extremely difficult decision" by owner Penguin Random House, Prima Games will be shutting down next spring, after almost 29 years of creating physical game guides. Reportedly, the team at Prima will stay on until early 2019 in order to complete the last handful of books that they've been contracted to publish, the final of which appears to be one for Bioware's Anthem. All three of their offices in Roseville, Indianapolis, and New York, which employs at least 40 staff members will be closed by March 2019.

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[Deleted User]

that final fantasy 9 guide was HORRIBLE. but the Pokemon guides are amazing.

the print quality of prima guides were second to none

edit, the ff9 guide was Brady Games lol
https://kotaku.com/the-worst-strategy-guide-ever-made-1702827492

Based on the article, Square made them do it, so it's not their fault.

 

[medoli900]

NOT true, unless you're talking about Kirby 64.

I am taking about pretty much any Prima guide. Just look at the Animal Crossing: New Leaf guide. A lot of furniture are missing and some of those that are there has the wrong bell price.

And no, I am not talking about the Amiibo update. They were wrong before even that update.

 

[goldensun87]

Prima guides were shit anyway.

 

[raxadian]

Before the internet and its abundance of Wikis and GameFAQs, you had magazines dedicated to videogames lke those for Nintendo, Playstation 1 and 2 and yes there was even one for the Sega Genesis. And general gaming mags, those existed too.

I never bought a game guide on my life but I still have several of those types of magazines stored in boxes. They sometimes included guides for games and answered letters for readers. And had tips and tricks sections.

I even remember buying a few issues of a PC gaming magazine.

 

[roamin]

i have quite a few guides of theres for various games, great guides and the quality is great.

BUT

my local game shop (EBgames) is selling the red dead redemption 2 guide from prima for $60. i can see why there going broke, its nearly the price of the actual game itself! at $60 i dont care if they stay or go as i wont buy them anymore anyways.

 

[raxadian]

i have quite a few guides of theres for various games, great guides and the quality is great.

BUT

my local game shop (EBgames) is selling the red dead redemption 2 guide from prima for $60. i can see why there going broke, its nearly the price of the actual game itself! at $60 i dont care if they stay or go as i wont buy them anymore anyways.

Used book/magazines stores sometimes have game guides quite cheap.

 

[tbb043]

f the internet, right in the a....

 

[Juggalo Debo]

this sux I have stacks of guides from them and brady.... theirs are by far better than bradys. I have like 30 online guides from them too

 

[drgnslayers]

It's a bummer that this is happening. They went from making unauthorized guides to making official guides with high quality content. I wonder who will succeed Prima now.

I would answer Brady Games but it has merged with Prima Games due to both companies having the same owner. that's why Prima Games guides are less crappy. I would answer Versus Books but it has failed for bankruptcy years ago. but, yeah, piggyback guides are a good alternative, especially that their DQ8 guide was actually more exhaustive than the Brady Games version