Reduced Price Game Guides: Thread Nine

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IAmTheCheapestGamer

IAmTheCheapestGamer

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First off, let me welcome you all to the new guide thread. Second, I'd like to ask you all to please keep conversations not pertaining to guide drops or which ones you've grabbed to a minimum to avoid cluttering the thread. It's not that I don't enjoy the chit chat, but that it may stop others from locating information on the newest drops.

That being said, let me thank Cheapy for creating this site, without which I would've spent probably 10 times what I HAVE spent on games and guides. Moreover, let me thank each and every one of my fellow CAGs for continuing to contribute to making this site a great place to find out about sales and clearances of the items we as gamers use most. Without a great community, NONE of this would be possible.

Furthermore, I would like to thank our Wiki editors HeatDolphin and Rocko for updating the Wiki. Great job.

Now, with that out of the way(and before I get to rambling), let's get on to making this new thread.

Useful Information(and links):

Game Guide Trading Clearinghouse(old one, locked now):
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=102021

Game Guide Trade Thread(KEEP ALL TRADE REQUESTS HERE OR IN PM'S)
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=175548

PLEASE keep ALL trade requests in there or PM's. Thank you.

Reduced Price Guide Discussion Thread(KEEP ALL DISCUSSION NOT RELATED TO GUIDE DROPS HERE!!!)
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=169252

Guide Lists(master drop lists and recent drops):

Master Drop List(by store, alphabetically):
http://wiki.cheapassgamer.com/index.php/Category:Strategy_Guides_%28master_lists%29

Recent Guide Drops(by date,also check the second post in this thread):
http://wiki.cheapassgamer.com/index.php/Category:Strategy_Guides_%28recent_drops%29

What is the purpose of this thread?

The purpose of this thread is to let our fellow CAGs know when a guide has dropped to a low price(it's NOT ALWAYS A PENNY), so they can go out and grab guides for themselves and for trading with other CAGs.

Anytime you have guide drops to report, post them here. Please specify at which store you found them and which guides you found and list them in alphabetical order. Thank you.

What are penny guides?

Penny guides are guides which have been on the market for a while and the publisher(or store chain) decide that the remaining stock of these guides have little to no chance of selling, so they issue an order to pull them from the shelves and destroy them. At that time, they are also marked as .01 in their inventory system, except in the case of BBV, which marks them .01 only AFTER pulling them.

Most stores have an agreement with the publisher that states that if they destroy the remaining stock of those items, they will receive a credit for their value from the publisher. This is why many stores are usually annoyed when we CAGs come in and buy the guides AT the penny price, since otherwise they would've received a full credit for those items.

According to an employee at a local BB, they also have a recycling program for the pennied stock, so as to not clutter landfill space with the guides. As to how true it is, I cannot confirm, but I would hope that the paper is at least recycled instead of just dumpstered.

Prior Reduced price game guide threads:

Guide Three:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=50515&highlight=guide
Guide Four:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1496376
Guide Five:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=85976
Guide Six:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116918
Guide Seven:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=131717
Guide Seven and a half:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=142400
Guide Eight:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=167157

Finally, below is a list of website links, each of which goes to their respective guide page. Whenever possible, I will update the links with better ones(if available).

Amazon
Barnes&Noble
BestBuy
BookPool
CircuitCity
Gamestop
Overstock
StrategyGuides.net
ToysRUs

Thanks to floormat, Guinavere and anyone else who has created and maintained the guide thread before, as well as to all of those who find out either advance information on drops or provide a list of which ones dropped when we do have a drop.

The post below this one contains a list going back at LEAST six months of the more current guide drops, which stores they occured at and which ones dropped. Note that sometimes(Oblivion guide, Quake Wars: Enemy Territory)there are multiple versions of a guide, be it that there are Prima versions, Brady versions and the occasional Nintendo and Doublejump guides.

Please specify WHICH version has dropped when mentioning possible guide drops. Thank you.


 
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[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']
I apologize to those whose connections may be bogged down by this ginormous thread, but if all of the idle chit chat in this thread were in the DISCUSSION thread, this thread would not be so huge already.[/quote]

Two pages or two hundred pages - you are still only loading as many posts as you have in your settings ;)
 
[quote name='neocisco']There's nothing stopping anyone else from making a new thread...[/quote]

Wouldn't they just merge it with this one? IATCG does an awesome job of the updates so I'm not complaining.
 
[quote name='shoe478']Wouldn't they just merge it with this one? IATCG does an awesome job of the updates so I'm not complaining.[/quote]

Second'd. IATCG goes above and beyond for this thread, so let the man/thread be.
 
[quote name='neocisco']There's nothing stopping anyone else from making a new thread...[/quote]


Yes, there is.

Dr. Shrike and Notorious IATCG will pistol whip you in a drive by with their thugged-out CAGsta wayz if anyone even tries, yo.
 
I've been monitoring GS.com today for possible guide drops but so far it doesn't look like it. Then again, February is a short month. My car is in the shop so I can't check stores; has anyone else tried at the store?
 
[quote name='hellmutt']I've been monitoring GS.com today for possible guide drops but so far it doesn't look like it. Then again, February is a short month. My car is in the shop so I can't check stores; has anyone else tried at the store?[/QUOTE]

No, but with the amount of drops they had last month I think February will probably go by without a guide drop at GS. Game Informer magazines are still featured prominently on the guide racks at one of my local stores.
 
[quote name='Slim Gatsby']Yes, there is.

Dr. Shrike and Notorious IATCG will pistol whip you in a drive by with their thugged-out CAGsta wayz if anyone even tries, yo.[/quote]

Ooohh, I'm shakin'.:lol:
 
[quote name='punkmaggit']Second'd. IATCG goes above and beyond for this thread, so let the man/thread be.[/quote]

Actually, if not for EVERY CAG who provides info on drops, this thread would be a mishmash of 'I think such and such dropped, but I'm not 100% sure' and 'any drops lately' posts.

Speaking of any drops lately, I wonder why we haven't seen a drop from Toys R Us in a while? Do we still have our source(s) for info there?

So, if anything, I'm extremely thankful that we have our sources, from those who work at the stores that drop guides to those CAG's who take time out of their day to get stuff scanned and report on drops.

So, everyone who has contributed to this thread should give themselves a pat on the back, since you're the ones who have helped the most. I just post the info given to me in one spot.

If I get time in the next couple days, I will make a new thread, but I've just been a bit busy lately running here and there.
 
Went into CC at lunch and picked up some guides. They are 40% off unless they come up a penny. I wanted WOW Master Edition, but it was $10 (I'm a total CAG). But I did bite on the Lego Batman guide for $8 (the kids play it) and a Quake 4 guide that came up a penny. The rep said he couldn't sell it for that and the manager told him $6. But another rep said "just do it for a dollar". That was cool.

The latest CC discounts today will bring in the crowds this weekend for sure. If you still need something from there, I'd go today or tomorrow...
 
I picked up a few of the God Of War 2 guides for a penny at my local CC. The cashier didnt seem to care they were a penny. I also found a guide for Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 (Prima). Not sure where that came from but it was a penny too.
 
I went to GS today to pick up the new Fire Emblem game and I found a Lego Indiana Jones guide. There were actually 2 of them but one was in terrible shape. It looked like if someone had taken a bite out of the front cover. When I went to pay, I offered the clerk my Edge card for payment. He scanned the card and I told him that I actually wanted to pay with my store credit. He told me that he was trying to get me a 10% discount on the guide but that it had rang up a penny. :lol:
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']Wait, you can get 10% off guides with the edge card?[/quote]

Not that I know of. As far as I know, GS only gives a discount on guides when you buy the game along with the guide. The clerk sincerely seemed to think that Edge would work on the guide. I think he was just a misinformed GS clerk. Anyways, most of us in this thread would laugh at the thought at buying a guide at 10% off MSRP.
 
[quote name='emg28']Not that I know of. As far as I know, GS only gives a discount on guides when you buy the game along with the guide. The clerk sincerely seemed to think that Edge would work on the guide. I think he was just a misinformed GS clerk. Anyways, most of us in this thread would laugh at the thought at buying a guide at 10% off MSRP.[/quote]

Yes and no. When you buy any new game and any guide, you automatically get 10% off the guide. However, if you use your EDGE card, you can get an additional 10% off the guide with a promo code. I forget the code itself, but it's listed in the "promotions" section of the POS system under "guides." (P.S. push F3.)
 
[quote name='detectiveconan16']Wait, you can get 10% off guides with the edge card?[/quote]

Actually buy a game (new or used) and the guide in the same transaction - you get 20% off with edge.
 
I went to BestBuy in Lakewood to pick up Street Fighter 4, and they still have some penny guides so I picked 2 copies of all the Final Fantasy drops, Mass Effect (Regular), and Dragon Quest 4. They still have SMG there, 2 copies.

The funny thing is that the POS can't accept cash at that moment, so I have to use CC to pay for $ 0.12. :)
 
wow...im sure glad i checked this thread to figure out they still had penny guides at my CC...here was my haul from today:

IMG_6145.jpg


NOTE: to all those anti-hoarders (which i am one myself)...this is CC liquidation...and those guides woulda just been trashed cuz no one woulda bought them anyway..so hoarding was the only option :whistle2:D

and i bought my first FULL-PRICED GUIDE (*GASP!*) in years...found it at Blockbuster, amazingly enough...Rogue Galaxy Strategy Guide - $19.99
 
Hit Best Buy in Cambridge, MA and found Age of Conan and the World of Warcraft collection for a penny each. The place still had a few copies of Age of Conan. No penny guides at the Best Buy in Saugus, MA.

Also, I'm new to fishing for cheap price guides. I swung through a couple of Gamestop stores, but they were mall stores with limited floor space and had few or no guides on display. How do you find penny guides at these places, do they just keep their stock of guides in the backroom?
 
[quote name='Mike Toole']Hit Best Buy in Cambridge, MA and found Age of Conan and the World of Warcraft collection for a penny each. The place still had a few copies of Age of Conan. No penny guides at the Best Buy in Saugus, MA.

Also, I'm new to fishing for cheap price guides. I swung through a couple of Gamestop stores, but they were mall stores with limited floor space and had few or no guides on display. How do you find penny guides at these places, do they just keep their stock of guides in the backroom?[/quote]

The trick with hitting the mall stores for guides that pennied is to ask for the 1-2 or so that you REALLY want first, telling the clerk that you 'heard they were clearanced but didn't see them out'.

If you're nice enough, that tactic may just work, however it is truly 50/50 as to whether or not it will.

Of course, if they do bring out the 1-2 you ask for, then you can ask for a couple more you 'heard were on clearance' and it definitely helps to throw the clerks ringing those out for you a pre-order or two to bump their numbers, which is how they supposedly are evaluated(by pre-orders and Edge/Game Informer subscriptions).

Mind you, if you're me, then you're trying to cancel said pre-orders on the people who deny you the guides even when they're on the shelf and marked with the .01 tag, which supposedly hurts the numbers of those people who you cancel the pre-orders with. :D

I'm just mean like that. :lol:
 
Had an amazing experience flipping guides today. I traded a stack of about 10 worthless penny guides (Crysis, Codes & Cheats, Mario Party 8, Zelda Phantom Hourglass Softcover, Hellgate London, Army of Two, Rock Band, Metroid Prime 3, God of War II, and Soul Calibur IV LE minus CD) for seven rare (or semi-rare) guides:

Nintendo Power Zelda Collector's Edition Guide
Prima Fire Emblem (GBA) Guide
Golden Sun/The Lost Age Double Guide
Final Fantasy IV Advance (Nintendo Power) Guide
Prima Zelda: A Link to the Past Guide
Nintendo Power Zelda: Minish Cap Guide
Versus Books Zelda Ocarina of Time Guide

Totally worth it. I'll be flipping some more penny guides there soon.
 
[quote name='Doomstink']Had an amazing experience flipping guides today. I traded a stack of about 10 worthless penny guides (Crysis, Codes & Cheats, Mario Party 8, Zelda Phantom Hourglass Softcover, Hellgate London, Army of Two, Rock Band, Metroid Prime 3, God of War II, and Soul Calibur IV LE minus CD) for seven rare (or semi-rare) guides:

Nintendo Power Zelda Collector's Edition Guide
Prima Fire Emblem (GBA) Guide
Golden Sun/The Lost Age Double Guide
Final Fantasy IV Advance (Nintendo Power) Guide
Prima Zelda: A Link to the Past Guide
Nintendo Power Zelda: Minish Cap Guide
Versus Books Zelda Ocarina of Time Guide

Totally worth it. I'll be flipping some more penny guides there soon.[/quote]

You need to start a blog and quit wasting our time with this junk.
 
[quote name='shoe478']You need to start a blog and quit wasting our time with this junk.[/quote]

I thought I had clicked my bookmark for the Discussion thread. You really don't have to be so hostile about it, it won't waste your time if you just skip past it.

I'm moving my post over to the discussion thread.
 
Anyone know if anything else at game stop dropped? I was at a Mall gamestop.(Which was having a Street Fighter IV tournament for the arcade machine) and they had a stacj of guides behind the cash register leaning against the wall. I asked her to see the guides and she said sorry they aren't for sale. The only guide facing me was Tales of Symphonia Dawn of the new world, everything else was turned around. I'm not sure if it's pennied, just got me curious on if there was another drop.
 
[quote name='gi60']I went to BestBuy in Lakewood to pick up Street Fighter 4, and they still have some penny guides so I picked 2 copies of all the Final Fantasy drops, Mass Effect (Regular), and Dragon Quest 4. They still have SMG there, 2 copies.

The funny thing is that the POS can't accept cash at that moment, so I have to use CC to pay for $ 0.12. :)[/quote]

That BB is really decent for penny guides. A while back, I was able to pick up a couple of LSW: CS guides and an Oblivion guide (tan) way after they had dropped. I don't usually go out that far but if i'm near by, I'll take a look.
 
Hit Best Buy in Everett, MA and scored Super Mario Galaxy (hardcover) and Final Fantasy Tactics War of the Lions for pennies. There are two additional copies of each title at the store-- I was feeling greedy and tried to snag 'em, but the manager was suspicious and would only let me have one of each. I don't feel the need to swing by again, so they may still be there for other CAGs if the manager hasn't pulled them off the floor.

Interestingly, neither of them scanned in at the kiosk (I got a "please check with customer service" message), only the register. Is this a common phenomenon? Both books I got at the Cambridge BBY scanned in correctly at $0.01.

An amusing footnote: I was digging for change to pay for the two books and realized I'd left it in the car. The clerk grinned hugely and said he'd take care of it-- let me walk with both books. He made both of our nights. :D
 
Went to a far-away BB looking for a Madcatz SF4 PS3 controller. Came away empty handed on that front, but I did find a huge amount of guides. I found:

Crisis Core: FFVII
Dragon Quest IV x3
Fable II LE x2
Final Fantasy XII
Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn

I only took up what I thought was still a penny, but I probably left a bunch of the filler guides behind. The cashier knew about penny guides, and had actually gotten a FFXII guide for herself when they first dropped. Nice to find a store that doesn't give a damn about doing their job :).
 
[quote name='jjmai']halo 3 & mario galaxy guides 1cent at blockbuster[/quote]

I will try to confirm this at a couple locations tomorrow.
 
[quote name='Wolve11']I just scored a big final fantasy package including a few guides: how much does the ff7 guide go for? It's not rare is it?[/quote]

20 bucks at the most since the FF7 market has sort of calmed down. Each final fantasy guide is around that price actually, so there's some money there to be made.
 
Well I think I got a good deal anyway- a ps1, ff7, 8 and two others and 3 guides two of them being ff7 guides for $75. All are complete I believe.
 
[quote name='Josef']Why not just talk about it in the Reduced Guides Discussion thread? Why make more work for the mods?

http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=169252[/quote]

Because when I'm using my phone and am in a hurry its a pain in the ass to load through the CAG forums and instead I'll just post in the one I have up.
Basically I'll just post wherever I want and if it isn't the right section it can be moved by a moderator. Seriously I really don't care.
 
[quote name='Wolve11']Because when I'm using my phone and am in a hurry its a pain in the ass to load through the CAG forums and instead I'll just post in the one I have up.
Basically I'll just post wherever I want and if it isn't the right section it can be moved by a moderator. Seriously I really don't care.[/QUOTE]

Why do you even have to post in a hurry? Do you honestly think anyone who looks in this thread is waiting with baited breath and continually refreshing the page thinking "when is Wolve11 gonna post??!!?? when is Wolve11 gonna post?!!!???!!"?
 
[quote name='Ubiiquitous']Why do you even have to post in a hurry? Do you honestly think anyone who looks in this thread is waiting with baited breath and continually refreshing the page thinking "when is Wolve11 gonna post??!!?? when is Wolve11 gonna post?!!!???!!"?[/quote]

I got responses....so someone is reading what I write and I got the answers I was looking for, so it did serve its purpose. I always post here at whatever time I want and I always get replied to so it really doesn't matter whether or not I post in a hurry or not.
Quit being butthurt already and move on.
 
In a rather shocking development, I found a single Fable 2 LE Guide for a penny at my local Best Buy, long after I had believed everything was pulled
 
[quote name='dys006']I will try to confirm this at a couple locations tomorrow.[/quote]

anyone able to confirm that halo and mario galaxy are a penny at blockbuster? i would go try and look but dont really want to go since its pouring rain...
 
[quote name='ZForce']In a rather shocking development, I found a single Fable 2 LE Guide for a penny at my local Best Buy, long after I had believed everything was pulled[/quote]

When I find one guide just randomly sticking out, my theory is that it was in some other section when guides were pulled and it was put back there after.
 
Does anyone know of any stores in or around Margate/Coral Springs FL that penny guides? I got lucky at Best Buy once but the clerk said they usually pull them. All the gamestops I've been to said that the employees get to buy them, then they throw them out.
 
[quote name='outofthepark44']Does anyone know of any stores in or around Margate/Coral Springs FL that penny guides? I got lucky at Best Buy once but the clerk said they usually pull them. All the gamestops I've been to said that the employees get to buy them, then they throw them out.[/quote]

Buy them? More like take them home. Every store pennies guides. You just have to be there before they pull them. Gamestop, for example, pennies guides and might pull them on the day they get pennied. I'm pretty sure the managers let the employees have their pick at whatever guides they want and after all is said and done they just toss them in the garbage.
 
[quote name='ZForce']In a rather shocking development, I found a single Fable 2 LE Guide for a penny at my local Best Buy, long after I had believed everything was pulled[/quote]


I think most of the guides are still at the stores in the back. probably costs more to have them ship it back.
 
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