Federico Salerno, founder of Games Collection

I got to know Federico Salerno a little better thanks to the interview you are about to read, and you too, like me, will realize in the end that he is one of us, a man who has not forgotten the boy he was and always will be, with a ball with unpredictable trajectories at his feet and the dream of living a thousand adventures, just like his idol Indiana Jones.

SIMON: Final Fantasy X. At one point Yuna says this line that I have never forgotten: «If we fight to preserve just one memory, then we will end up losing them all.» I think that this applies both to a fantasy world on the brink of the abyss, like the one in the tenth chapter of the most famous RPG saga ever, and to the world of collecting, don’t you? It is not enough to preserve a memory of the “game we loved so much as children,” we must fight not to lose them all. Federico Salerno is known for being the founder of Games Collection and not only, but who is Federico today? To put it like Steve Rogers: once the armor is off, what is underneath? You can’t answer like Tony Stark!

FEDERICO: The path I have taken throughout my life has certainly been that of preserving the memories of a videogame past, which in reality carry with them a lived experience made up of emotions, friendships, passions, anecdotes, and much more. But if we want to be objective, what we carry with us is pure history, the history of video games, of which I consider myself an avid scholar and enthusiast, a bit like Indiana Jones, just to cite a (my) idol from years gone by. Since I was a child I kept my belongings with respect, so much so that part of my current collection is still made up of the games that were given to me in the 80s and 90s and then, from 2000, I began sharing them online, first through www.federico.biz and then through forums and the gamescollection.it community.

Today, looking back, I remain the same enthusiast, only more experienced (n.b. older) and with many more collectibles and with ever less space to store them, display them, and play them. The spirit has remained unchanged, first and foremost the sharing and dissemination, albeit with a lighthearted tone, which lends itself well to the video game world. Taking oneself seriously, yes, but remembering that we are still talking about games.

SIMON: Games Collection had the great merit of bringing together under the same roof thousands of enthusiasts who, before then, perhaps hesitated to proudly show off their collection of Atari cartridges and that dusty piece of military hardware called the Vic20, a sacred and inviolable relic for those like us, and yet even today there is still a sizeable group of “well-meaning people” convinced that the first consoles, the Amigas, and the Simulmondo floppy disks (how I loved them!) are just “old junk” to be thrown away sooner or later. The world of collecting has certainly changed over the decades, but love is a force that lasts forever, or so I like to believe. What does it mean to you to love what appears to be a mere “object,” knowing the emotional value it might establish with those who own it?

FEDERICO: When, about 20 years ago, in 2006 at the Video Games History in Monza, I was asked what video games were to me, I replied “a space-time tunnel.” I still think so today. When I play Kiki Kai Kai, vivid memories immediately surface of how, in 1987, I was on vacation in Brallo, the smells, the scents, the hills, my friends, tennis. It’s incredible how a video game can transport you through time; of course, while I write these words, the little tune from the first stage and the boss theme are echoing in my head. There are dozens of titles that have this effect on me.

If I play with the Intellivision, the NES, the Game Boy, the Amiga, I remember perfectly the moment I bought them or was given them, the great solo games and games with friends, they are all indelible moments.

La mia taverna is my game room, my den, my refuge capable of taking me away, if necessary, from everything. I walk in, I see objects that have made the history of video games and the history of my life as an enthusiast, in an instant the problems fly away, I close myself in my world.

But with this “old stuff” there is much more inclusion than laypeople may think, because the memories are linked to friendships, past and present, that were born precisely online, by sharing items from one’s own life on Gamescollection.it. And it is precisely the human side that is the absolute value of this passion and, without sharing, it would objectively not be the same thing.

SIMON: Let's talk about The Games Market and the reality created by our very own Tony Stark, Alberto Trussardi! His vision, the result of a boundless passion for video games, especially retrogaming, must have really drawn you in, from what I can tell. In The Legend of Zelda, there's that old man who says “it's dangerous to go alone, take this” before handing the sword to Link: I like to think Alberto did the same, metaphorically speaking. The Games Market is the hero Link, the dungeon is none other than the labyrinthine world of collecting, full of traps and villains, and you, Federico, are the sword that fights through honest and passionate outreach! What do you think?

FEDERICO: I think we are all healthy crazy people! Alberto and I first and foremost. Crazy with passion to spread and to live. The Games Market is an amazing tool, the first one I use to “catalog” my collection, which, for those who know me, has always been archived exclusively in my head. Now I am giving it shape and value. But behind The Games Market there is a long-term project, which will always find the support and backing of the Gamescollection.it community, which is also involved in the testing phase. I personally pester Alberto with a thousand requests, very often the same ones, and I get called a “boomer”: although not in the strict sense, I certainly am one from a collecting point of view. I, like many other veterans of our community, lived through the golden age of collecting, when people threw consoles, computers, and games into general waste, and we accumulated them, giving them back life and dignity. Now the market is different, the ranks of collectors have multiplied worldwide, as have the values of the items. The Games Market helps all enthusiasts, young and old alike, understand where we are going and make wise choices when purchasing pieces for the collection, it being understood, of course, that many times people do crazy things without looking at values, but only with the heart or to complete a collection.

SIMON: Before saying goodbye, I’d like to ask you what plans you have for the future and whether you still have a dream in the drawer waiting to be fulfilled. Hideo Kojima, through his most famous video game avatar, Solid Snake, the hero we all would have liked to be at least once in our lives, said that «building the future and keeping the past alive are the same thing». Do you have any advice to give to people who, like you, would like to start giving value to their childhood memories by turning them into something more than simple knickknacks?

FEDERICO: The projects for the future are always many and there will be lots of new things. For now I nurture my passion with the legendary Fabio Bio Massa and all the friends who follow us on twitch. We experience our live stream as a after-dinner chat among friends, where we talk and give voice to many guests (ranging from well-known faces to “simple” collectors like us) to share our passion and experience. Many people write to us to thank us because we make them dream, remember the past, have fun, spend some time carefree, and often we inspire them to learn more about niches of games and consoles that they had never known and/or considered. This affection is priceless. To everyone who follows us, of course, we always recommend studying the history of video games and using tools like The Games Market to know whether they are spending their savings well. Unfortunately, the sea is full of sharks…

I thank you for the opportunity and I look forward to seeing you at my place for a big game, you’re always welcome!

I thanked Federico, in addition to accepting his invitation without batting an eye! And when it happens, maybe in front of a beer and an Street Fighter II arcade cabinet, I will choose Vega and it will be a splendid, fun shoulder-to-shoulder battle.