TURIN, Sept 14 — Italian police have dismantled a video game trafficking ring that dealt in fake vintage consoles and games valued at nearly €50 million (RM238 million).
Among the seized items were counterfeit versions of popular 1980s and 90s titles such as Mario Bros, Street Fighter, and Star Wars, alongside imitation consoles from Nintendo, Sega, and Atari, according to a report published in the BBC today.
Alessandro Langella, head of Turin’s financial police’s economic crime unit, revealed that around 12,000 consoles containing over 47 million pirated games were confiscated.
The devices, imported from China, were imitations of devices made by Nintendo, Sega and Atari and were destined for sale in specialised shops and online.
However, none met EU safety standards, as they were fitted with non-certified batteries and circuits.
Nine Italians have been arrested and face up to eight years in prison if convicted.
The seized games have since been destroyed.
The rise in popularity of “retrogaming,” which includes highly sought-after older games and consoles, has contributed to the high market value of these pirated products.
Vintage games and used consoles are highly sought after, with functioning Super Nintendo systems and games being sold online for prices ranging from £100 to £275, depending on their condition.
In 2021, a sealed copy of Super Mario 64 broke records, fetching over US$1.5 million at auction.
