I find myself reading gaming instruction manuals less and less these days, although mostly that's because, for the most part, play one Sonic the Hedgehog or Castlevania game and you've basically played them all in terms of objectives and control schemes.  There'll be dashing, jumping, whipping, Chaos Emeralds, red skeletons that get up after being attacked, and whiny secondary characters that prattle on and on and on.  I know the routine.  Turn me loose on something entirely new, however, and I'll do my homework every time.  Plus, games today tend to have little tutorials or explanations in them whereas in the old days we were pretty much on our own thanks to the limitations of the technology.

Speaking of new games, publishers and retailers seem to be teaming up a lot these days to offer goodies and bonuses to eager gamers who preorder new titles.  Buy early enough (or spend enough money) and there's a whole world of art books, commemorative coins, figurines, and other stuff to be had based on elements of beloved characters and franchises.  Do you get swept up in the preordering bonanza?  Do you just have to have that limited edition thingee?  Let's hear some of your thoughts on the matter.