Age by itself doesn't matter when the names are sub-standard quality.
But if you're talking about good 1-2 industry keywords and brandables, age is a great selling point.
I'm gearing up to launch a startup on a category killer 2-word .com that I bought from another investor in 2011. It's a 1997 name, which gives it a slight edge (when developed) over newer names.
The great thing is, an aged name is an asset that has stood the test of time. If a name has survived to be developed, traded, and bought and sold among end users and investors, rather than dropped and re-registered (or NOT re-registered), it clearly has some value. When looking for names to buy, age is a factor. It also helps weed out a lot of the pigeon crap that has been newly registered.