I'm another one who reads the manuals...at least when there is one of substance, which I grant is not often anymore (which maybe speaks a little to the sad state of games these days...if the manual doesn't have much substance, the game probably doesn't either).
This will date me a little, but I remember playing games like Ultima 5, 6, or 7, when the manual...no, the BOOK that came with (not to mention the cloth map) was indispensable to playing the game. Ah, those were the days...