How to play Encounter at L-5 online
The game uses the Atari paddle controllers, and the emulator switches to paddle mode automatically.
- Move the aiming cursor: left and right arrow keys
- Fire (hold) / move the launcher (release): Space bar
- Choose a game variation: F11 (the console’s Select switch)
- Start a game: F12 (the console’s Reset switch), then Space
- Enemy speed: F4 and F9 (the difficulty switches)
- Switch between paddle and joystick mode: Alt + L
Gameplay
While you hold the button, your launcher stays locked in place and fires a steady stream of antimatter packets towards the cursor, so you steer your shots by turning the dial. When you let go, the launcher vanishes and reappears directly under the cursor.
Megalyte warrior ships swoop down, dodging and shooting back; the further away a ship is when you hit it, the more it scores. From time to time a large red death ship dives at the colony, announced by an alarm, and is worth 10 points. You have four launchers and lose one each time you are hit or a death ship reaches the colony floor. Every 800 points the game moves up a level, with faster, more evasive ships.
There are 26 variations: odd numbers are for one player, even numbers for two. The difficulty switches set the ships’ speed: both on B is slow, left A and right B is moderate, left B and right A is fast.
Tips
- Shoot high. Distant ships are worth more, so hit them before they get low.
- Reposition with short releases. Let go briefly to hop under a new target, then fire at once.
- React to the alarm. Put your cursor across the death ship’s dive path before it reaches the colony.
About the game
Data Age, based in Campbell, California, launched in October 1982 with five games at once: Encounter at L-5, Airlock, Bugs, Sssnake and Warplock. Encounter at L-5 carries the code DA1001, the first in the range, but its designer is not known. Despite heavy advertising, the company filed for bankruptcy in May 1983. A PAL version was sold in Europe under the Game World label.
Similar games to play next
- Warplock – another space shooter from Data Age’s first batch
- Bugs – one of Data Age’s first games from 1982
- Missile Command – defend cities from above with a moving cursor
- Demon Attack – a fast shooter against diving enemies