How to play Bugs online
Bugs was made for the Atari paddle controllers, the dials that came with many 2600 consoles. The emulator above switches to paddle mode automatically for this game.
- Move your aiming cursor: left and right arrow keys
- Fire, start the game, and restart after a hit: Space bar
- Choose one or two players: F11 (the consoleās Select switch)
- Start a new game: F12 (the consoleās Reset switch), then Space
- Difficulty: F4 (the Player 1 difficulty switch)
- Switch between paddle and joystick mode: Alt + L
Gameplay
You do not aim a gun directly. Instead you move an aiming cursor, your āUltrasonic Weaponā, under a bug as it emerges from its nest, and energy packets fly from your shipās firing bays towards it. Once a packet is on its way it keeps going in that direction, even if you move the cursor. If a bug gets fully out of its nest, it damages your ship.
The Phylax is the second threat. While it is green it is outside your ship: it cannot hurt you and you cannot hurt it. When it turns yellow, that is a warning, and when it turns red it is inside your ship and heading for your weapon. You destroy it by putting it in the path of your own shots. After each hit you press the button to repair and carry on. The game ends when your weapon or ship has been hit three times; the counter in the corner of the screen shows how many hits you have left.
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Destroy a bug | 1 |
| Destroy a Phylax | 5 |
| Reach 30 points and move up a level | 8 bonus |
Each new level is marked by a new āCosmic Barrierā. From then on, more than one Phylax can be inside your ship at once, and the bugs that replace the ones you destroy move faster. The difficulty switch sets the challenge; unusually, the manual calls position A the beginnersā setting and B the one for more advanced players. In the two-player game, players take turns, with player 2 using the second paddle.
Tips
- Fire, then step aside. To kill a red Phylax, place your cursor so the shot will cross its path, then move your weapon out of the way before it reaches you. The manual itself suggests this move.
- Hold the button and sweep. Keeping the button pressed while you move the cursor back and forth fires a stream of packets, which helps against the faster bugs on later levels.
- Remember your shots canāt turn. Aim where the bug is emerging, not where you want the cursor to be next.
About Data Age
Data Age was founded in April 1982 in Saratoga, California, and soon moved to nearby Campbell. It released eight 2600 cartridges, and Bugs came out in October 1982 as one of the first. The company did not last long: it filed for bankruptcy in May 1983, one of the early casualties of the video game crash. A PAL version for European televisions was sold as āBugs!ā under the Gameworld label. Later reviews of the game have been mixed, mostly on the low side, but its indirect aiming system is unusual among 2600 shooters.
