Data Age was a small publisher from Campbell, California, founded in 1982. It launched with five Atari 2600 cartridges in October 1982: Sssnake, Airlock, Bugs, Encounter at L-5 and Warplock. Its most famous release was Journey Escape, starring the rock band Journey, which the company backed with heavy TV advertising. Sales fell far below its hopes, and Data Age filed for bankruptcy in 1983 after releasing eight games. One finished game, Secret Agent, was left behind and only came out on cartridge in 2001.
Journey Escape: guide the band past fans and promoters to their Scarab escape vehicle.
Frankenstein’s Monster (1983): wall in the monster before the storm brings it to life.
Bermuda Triangle: collect strange artifacts from an underwater city with a mini-sub.
Encounter at L-5 (1982): defend a space colony with paddles and an unusual aiming system.
Secret Agent: a spy-themed catching game in the style of Kaboom!.
All of them are listed below, ready to play in your browser.
Secret Agent is an unreleased Atari 2600 game from Data Age, the small California publisher behind Journey Escape and Bugs. It was finished in 1983, but the company went bankrupt that year before the cartridge could reach shops. It is a catching game in the style of Kaboom!, with a spy theme and a twist at the end of each round. You can play it here in your browser.
As you navigate your spacecraft to the farthest corners of the galaxy, along the edges of hyperspace and hypertime, you find yourself caught in a Space/Time Warp that paralyzes your vessel. Suddenly, a group of space pirates appears, intent on destroying you and your crew. Your Tachyon Launcher remains functional, firing deadly particles at faster-than-light … Read more
Sssnake is a 1982 Atari 2600 shooting game from Data Age, one of the five cartridges the company launched with in October 1982. You are a big-game hunter hiding in an old fortress in the Amazon, shooting prehistoric creatures outside the walls while snakes slither in towards you. Unlike most shooters, you fire outwards from the middle of the screen, which gives it an unusual feel. You can play it here in your browser.
Journey Escape is an Atari 2600 game made and published by Data Age, starring the American rock band Journey. After a concert you have to get all five band members through a crowd of fans, photographers and promoters to their Scarab escape vehicle, before time runs out and without losing the concert cash. The cartridge carries a 1982 copyright and reached shops around the start of 1983. It is an odd piece of rock-and-video-game history, and you can play it here in your browser.
Frankenstein’s Monster is a 1983 action platform game by Data Age for the Atari 2600. A storm is charging up the monster in Dr. Frankenstein’s castle, and you have to wall it in with stones before it comes to life. It is a race against the clock across pits of acid, trapdoors, spiders and bats, with a memorable ending if you fail. You can play it here in your browser.
Encounter at L-5 is a paddle-controlled space shooter from Data Age, released in 1982 as one of the company’s first five Atari 2600 cartridges. A space colony beyond the Moon’s orbit is under attack by the Megalytes, and your antimatter launcher is its only defence. An unusual aiming system, with a cursor that your launcher jumps to, sets it apart from other shooters of the time. You can play it here in your browser.
Bugs is a 1982 paddle-controlled shooting game from Data Age, a short-lived Californian publisher of Atari 2600 cartridges. You have landed on a dead planet ruled by intelligent “Super-Bugs”, and you have to blast them as they crawl out of their nests before they damage your ship. At the same time you must deal with the Phylax, creatures that seep through your hull to attack your weapon. You can play it here in your browser.
Bermuda Triangle is an underwater action game from Data Age, programmed by J. Ray Dettling and released in early 1983 (the manual is dated 1982). You steer a mini-sub down to a strange city on the ocean floor, grab its mysterious artifacts with a tractor beam and carry them back up to your research ship, while sharks, giant squid, drones and mines get in your way. You can play it here in your browser.
Airlock is a 1982 action game for the Atari 2600 by Data Age. Your nuclear submarine is disabled and sinking onto an undersea ledge, and you must climb out one deck at a time before the compartments flood, dodging loose torpedoes on the way. It is a short, simple race against the clock. You can play it here in your browser, with nothing to install.