Reduced Price Game Guides: Thread X(Ten)

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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 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/...d.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. Please, whenever possible, use RED font to make the drop info stand out. Thanks again.

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/...ighlight=guide
Guide Four:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/....php?p=1496376
Guide Five:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/...ad.php?t=85976
Guide Six:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/...d.php?t=116918
Guide Seven:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/...d.php?t=131717
Guide Seven and a half:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/...d.php?t=142400
Guide Eight:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/...d.php?t=167157
Guide Nine:
http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=187222

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
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.

Common Guide Drop Related Questions(FAQ):

FAQ - If you are new (or a vet with a few questions) look here SECOND! (After reading the above!)

Q: What Are Penny Guides?
A: 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.

Q: Do all guides from all stores drop at the same time?
A: No. While most chains have nationwide drops within their own store (as in every BB will have the same drops coast to coast), not every different chain drops at the same time (what drops at BB is NOT necessarily dropped at GS). When in doubt, check post TWO for drop info.

Q: I found a penny guide and a clerk denied me! I'ma report 'em!
A: Whoa, hold your horses there, pardner! First of all, not a question. Second, just because something is on the shelf, the clerk does NOT have to sell you that item. Most stores are PRIVATE property and as such can deny you just about anything they want - including a sale. The best advice is to not be rude, not be arrogant, and just try hard to get them to have pity on you.

Q: Why don't the clerks want to sell me their penny guides? Aren't they just throwing them away?
A: As stated above, the stores are ordered by the publisher to trash the guides, and are then given credit for those guides. If they don't do this, the publisher won't give them the credit - it's like losing a sale. On the employee level, selling a penny guide can sometimes get them in trouble (or even fired!) I know it seems silly, but this is their job we're talking about! Respect the man (or woman) behind the counter and you'll get a lot more guides than otherwise!

Q: Should I just ask if the store has penny guides then?
A: No, since that denotes that you have some insider information as to the runnings of these businesses.

Q: What if the clerk wants to know how I know so much about guide drops?
A: If asked where you got your info about guides that pennied, simply say either 'the internet' or 'a friend of mine told me they're on clearance'.

Q: But clerks will know what a penny guide is, right? I can talk to them like anyone else here...
A: Never use the word pennied to ANY store clerks unless you have built up a good rapport with them. Even then, it may seem a little fishy if you know more about their shop than they do.

Q: Are guides labeled as a penny on the shelf?
A: Sometimes. Most times, no. GS seems to label everything that gets a price drop, so often times guides will be stickered. But even so, they most likely won't sell them to you. A sticker does not mean 'have to sell'.

Q: I tried to buy a guide that this thread said was pennied and it didn't ring up as such! What gives?
A: Either 1) Our source was wrong (this rarely happens and is usually verified a FEW times within maybe an hour of posting), or 2) The clerk changed the price. It's usually number 2.

Q: What's the easiest way to get penny guides? This sounds like TONS of work!
A: Best Buy is probably the best place to get guides, followed by GameStop, GameCrazy, Toys R Us and then Blockbuster. From what I've seen though, probably 95% of guides that people get are snagged at BB - the rest come from the other stores. But it never hurts to try!

Q: Has there been a drop recently?
A: If you are asking this question you didn't fully understand the OP - go back and read it once more. When a drop happens, it will be posted, and then placed in the second post - trust us.

Q: How do you guys know so much about penny guides?
A: We sometimes have inside sources with the information from the stores themselves; other times, fellow CAGS just like you or me simply take suspected guides to the register and ask them to ring them up, to check their prices. Feel free to do this yourself, and help give back to the community by telling us what you find! However, DON'T ask "Has anyone checked XXX lately?", unless you are in the right thread (discussion area).

Thanks to GrilledWitOnions for creating the above FAQ, which should eliminate the need for such questions popping up in the thread from this point on out.
 
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I'm screwed today if guides drop, considering:

A) I just looked at the weather channel and noticed my forecast says rain allll day.
B) I rode my motorcycle to work today. Ugh.
 
[quote name='perdition(troy']I'm screwed today if guides drop, considering:

A) I just looked at the weather channel and noticed my forecast says rain allll day.
B) I rode my motorcycle to work today. Ugh.[/quote]

Wow. I'm usually lenient when it comes to people making pointless posts, because I make so many. But really, come on...We don't care about you riding your bike and missing out on guides, nor the fact that it's likely going to rain there.
 
[quote name='thehoweller']Wow. I'm usually lenient when it comes to people making pointless posts, because I make so many. But really, come on...We don't care about you riding your bike and missing out on guides, nor the fact that it's likely going to rain there.[/quote]This post is even more pointless than his. Thanks for being the thread police, though. I certainly appreciate it.

I haven't had a chance to check BB yet, but I should be able to check in a couple hours. The weather is really bad right now, or I'd leave within the hour. I still don't think we'll get any drops this week :(
 
[quote name='thehoweller']Wow. I'm usually lenient when it comes to people making pointless posts, because I make so many. But really, come on...We don't care about you riding your bike and missing out on guides, nor the fact that it's likely going to rain there.[/quote]

This is my careface :drool:

No guides were dropped at my BB this morning.
 
I deleted some clutter posts and in my morning bleariness accidentally deleted the entire thread :shock:. Fortunately I was able to recover it from the mod control panel... Ugh.. Anyway, the thread is back and the clutter removed - it seems no new drop today in any case.
 
[quote name='io']I deleted some clutter posts and in my morning bleariness accidentally deleted the entire thread :shock:. Fortunately I was able to recover it from the mod control panel... Ugh.. Anyway, the thread is back and the clutter removed - it seems no new drop today in any case.[/quote]

:lol: At least now I know I'm not the only one sleep typing sometimes on here. Thanks for removing some of the clutter, io.
 
Picked up Dawn of Mana (Brady) today at GameCrazy for a penny (didn't see it in the second post). Also had him check Lost Odyssey, Lego Star Wars II, Eternal Sonata, Lego Indy Jones, and Resident Evil 4 Wii, all still MSRP. He also gave me a promo poster for the New Pokemon game, which is pretty awesome!

Civickid, where are ya buddy?
 
Not sure if Dawn Of Mana is a new drop or not, but thanks for the info, punkmaggit. Furthermore, thanks for listing it in RED, so it stuck out in your post.

I added it to the March 4th drop list from Gamecrazy, but if we find out it's part of a newer drop list I'll add it to that.
 
Got lucky at a Blockbuster i'd never been to and found 3 Super Mario Galaxy guides pennied out. I can also confirm that Ninja Gaiden 2 is a penny as well.
 
So how often does Toys R Us drop / penny guides? It seems like not enough. My store has many older ones I figure would have been .01 now.
 
[quote name='dallascowboys']We Need More Drops!!!!!!!!!!! Almost A Month Long Drought!!!!!!!![/quote]

Thanks for the informative post. It really added ALOT to the thread. :roll: Will a mod please come in and delete this f'n post? Thanks.....
 
Game Crazy had a guide destroy this weekend. On the list were:

Advance Wars - Day of Ruin
Alone in the Dark
Def Jam Icon
Enchanted Arms
Forza Motorsports 2
Half Life 2 - Orange Box

That's it.
 
[quote name='cdul']Game Crazy had a guide destroy this weekend. On the list were:

Advance Wars - Day of Ruin
Alone in the Dark
Def Jam Icon
Enchanted Arms
Forza Motorsports 2
Half Life 2 - Orange Box

That's it.[/QUOTE]

Wow, Game Crazy is literally a year behind everyone else in pennying out guides.
 
[quote name='cdul']Game Crazy had a guide destroy this weekend. On the list were:

Advance Wars - Day of Ruin
Alone in the Dark
Def Jam Icon
Enchanted Arms
Forza Motorsports 2
Half Life 2 - Orange Box

That's it.[/QUOTE]

Hopefully Def Jam Icon was also on their game destroy list.
 
Okay, so I went to Game Crazy today and got A TON of guides for free, but there's a catch... they had to tear off the front covers of each one! >_<

Dawn of Mana [x4]
Forza Motorsport 2 [x6]
Enchanted Arms [x3]
Naruto: Uzumaki Chronicles [x3]
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin [x3]
Def Jam: Icon [x5]
Kane & Lynch [x8]
 
[quote name='PapaSmerf']^Ouch^[/quote]

Oh well, they were all free so I can't complain, but it sucks. Does Game Crazy usually do this for guides that are pennied? It was my first time buying guides from them for a penny...
 
[quote name='earvcunanan']Oh well, they were all free so I can't complain, but it sucks. Does Game Crazy usually do this for guides that are pennied? It was my first time buying guides from them for a penny...[/quote]

Not mine. They aren't strictly run so they just chill all day and they are glad that I want their penny guides.
 
The GC I went to had employees there that seemed like they hated their job, and they flat-out make up bull crap in front of customers who obviously don't know much about gaming. I'll check out another GC later and see if they'll keep the covers this time. The guy ripping up the guides I got had to call his manager and asked if he could tear the covers off. What a douche bag.
 
I hear more of this from Gamestop and actually discussed this with a GC manager today.

Aside: earvcunanan, get back to me on my PM please :)
 
[quote name='earvcunanan']The GC I went to had employees there that seemed like they hated their job, and they flat-out make up bull crap in front of customers who obviously don't know much about gaming. I'll check out another GC later and see if they'll keep the covers this time. The guy ripping up the guides I got had to call his manager and asked if he could tear the covers off. What a douche bag.[/quote]

Wow that sucks. I wish GC pennied guides out faster. They have about 5-10 7' Stacks of guides in the back but nothing is really pennied. They have a lot of Zelda PH Hard covers, MGS IV, GTA IV, Eturnal sonata, Resident Evil 4 with that guy on the cover, lost odyssey, and a lot more, all full price

Edit: Even though nothing really interests me from the GC drop I guess I will still stop by tomorrow to pick up some of it.
 
Managers and CR's I talked to said the only thing they had in back were the guides they could not sell yet due to pending release. Other GC's where they pull immediately seem to have a bunch in back. When I ask for a specific guide, they will sometimes pull one from the back.
 
Save yourself the hassle. You'll have more success demolishing a building using headbutts. Besides, there really isn't a need for 2 threads for the same thing.
 
Look back a few pages where this discussion belongs and you will see weeks of only my posts so I choose to be more pragmatic and post where the discussion is. As I have stated before, I wish it were not so.
 
Not trying to provoke, but is there honestly a good reason to have three seperate threads for essentially one topic? I understand a seperate trading thread, since people spam with big text and pictures... but what is the reason for having seperate discussion and drop thread? It seems unnecessary and just fuels the non-moderator spam of "omg not here" posts.
 
[quote name='neocisco']Save yourself the hassle. You'll have more success demolishing a building using headbutts. Besides, there really isn't a need for 2 threads for the same thing.[/quote]

Sure there is, just like if the Target/Kmart/Sears/etc/etc/etc deal threads had their own seperate threads for the yammering. I think either the Sears or Kmart thread is nearing 100 pages(with my setting of 50 posts per page)and more than half of that is probably 'I got X, Y and Z games from this store'.

I mean, I like hearing about people's scores as much as the next person, but really going on and on about nothing after a drop has been posted does nothing but add to the post count and makes it that much harder to discern if someone is posting info on a new drop or not.

There's three threads for guides, if you think about it. We have this thread, the discussion thread and the guide clearinghouse(WHERE ALL TRADE REQUESTS GO).

I would gladly redirect my aimless comments in the other threads that I make myself, if there were a seperate place for discussion like that, since I know I'm guilty of the same gibberish that I've tried to keep out of this thread.
 
To each their own, I guess. Since drops only happen on a sporadic basis I don't have a problem with general discussion and drops in one thread. One thread for trading and one for any talk seems fine to me. Target/Kmart drops are always going on; guides, only occasionally.
 
True. About the only thing I still have a REAL problem with are the same people who come in EVERY fuckin' Monday(or used to) and ask 'duhhh did anything drop?!?!?' without even reading any other recent posts to check for themselves.

That gets more than a bit redundant after a while.
 
So is Halo 3 confirmed to be penny at Blockbuster? Since i just went to one BBv and have it price check but the guy insist it is the cover price, although i am not sure he did really scan it properly in the system...
 
Blockbuster, much like ANY store that pennies guides, is YMMV. However, I believe the proper method that Blockbuster uses is that they only penny guides ONCE they fully pull them.

However, maybe they missed that one guide and the clerk at BBV lied to you about it's price.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']True. About the only thing I still have a REAL problem with are the same people who come in EVERY fuckin' Monday(or used to) and ask 'duhhh did anything drop?!?!?' without even reading any other recent posts to check for themselves.

That gets more than a bit redundant after a while.[/quote]

Im sorry, but this happens in every thread, on every topic... it's called being lazy or just trolling for responses. There's no way to really stop it. The BBV thread is a perfect example. Io could spend hours pruning the thread of posts like that and the person would turn around and ask it again.

I had a similar initial response as neocisco, because I didn't really see a point in having three threads when only two are really necessary. Can spend time typing out posts complaining about people not seperating discussion... or pruning the non-moderator "OMG WRONG THREAD" posts... *shrug*
 
There's only one thing for those lazy posters who keep asking the same idiotic questions over and over: PERMA BAN

OK, maybe that's too harsh, but if some of the numbskulls would actually listen and do some of their own legwork, it'd be nice. But I guess that's what the IGNORE feature on CAG is for, huh?

Of course, putting in size seven font posts is a hell of a stress reliever for me and a real attention grabber. Plus, it seems to have worked(for now). Then again, it's NOT monday yet.
 
[quote name='Wolve11']So did anything drop at BB today?









;)[/quote]


yeah i'm working a new work schedule so i can't go price check until after work at 7pm so it'd be nice if someone could before i leave so to know if i should call in sick today and boy do i want a reason to do that LOL!
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Blockbuster, much like ANY store that pennies guides, is YMMV. However, I believe the proper method that Blockbuster uses is that they only penny guides ONCE they fully pull them.

However, maybe they missed that one guide and the clerk at BBV lied to you about it's price.[/quote]

This. The clerk flat out lied to the guy. That's it. Prices are nationwide for BBV as long as the store isn't a franchise store. Or maybe the clerk is an idiot and didn't read the computer right. It's possible that he did read it wrong because when we scan items to look up their price we get two prices. It's MSRP(which is wrong almost all the time in the system) and the price we are selling it at.

The way blockbuster does it's penny guide pulling is just like any other store. Someone prints all the paperwork on sunday for what needs to be pulled/transferred for the week and it gets done little by little. The penny guide pulling is usually the first thing done, but most stores just don't give a rats ass so they leave them up on the shelf.
 
I was in a hurry so I didn't have a lot of time. I grabbed the one I thought most likely to have dropped: Gears of War 2 LE. It was still $29.99 at BB.
 
Checked many Prima guides including Fallout 3 CE, Deadspace, Sonic Unleashed, Rise of Argo, Gears 2 LE, Haze, Mirror's Edge Hardcover. All full retail.
 
:roll::roll: Like I said before, I think some of ya's just do it(the asking bout drops) for shits n giggles.:bomb::bomb:

The only time I really check the thread anymore is when I see it's been bumped or new posts are in it(which is often) and it's often a waste.
 
It's not a bad idea to post in here whenever people check for drops especially on Mondays. I'll check as often as I can and from time to time it's saved me a trip to BB plenty of times.
 
This is why I wish we had more reliable sources for drop info from each store chain though, so we didn't have to have people wasting their time checking every Monday. Mind you, I AM grateful for people who do check, but if there's no new posts concerning a drop and nothing did drop, then WHY POST?

Much like this post, it's just a waste of a post to say 'nothing dropped' or 'anything drop'.
 
But why the hell are people checking when it isn't the first Monday of the month? That's the typical drop date, NOT the second or third Monday of the month. Like I said, I wish we had 100% reliable and constant info from employees from each store that drop guides, since then NO ONE would have to go out and check.

Where the hell is fuss(BB source) and I thought we had a TRU and GS source as well?
 
I thought someone noticed last year in April BB did two drops in the month. The last BB drop apparently went all weekend before someone checked it out on Monday.
 
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