What Game Publishers Are Saying About The Tariffs

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Many tabletop game companies have already spoken out about the recent US tariffs and how they will be affected. I will add to this thread as and when I hear of new statements.

Game Manufacturer's Association (GAMA) -- "The latest imposition of a 54% tariff on products from China by the administration is dire news for the tabletop industry and the broader US economy. As an industry highly dependent on producing goods overseas and importing them into the US, this policy will have devastating consequences. Tariffs are essentially taxes on consumers, not on the countries where the products are produced. Publishers will be forced to pass these costs along to their customers or face the prospect of ceasing operations. Nearly a third of all US consumer goods — including clothes, food products, appliances, cars, and entertainment items like games — are imported. This means higher prices across the board as all these products will need to increase prices to compensate for these new Trump Taxes... This one-two punch is likely to put many of our members out of business or force them to downsize and lay off employees to survive."

Steve Jackson Games -- "Some people ask, "Why not manufacture in the U.S.?" I wish we could. But the infrastructure to support full-scale boardgame production – specialty dice making, die-cutting, custom plastic and wood components – doesn't meaningfully exist here yet. I've gotten quotes. I've talked to factories. Even when the willingness is there, the equipment, labor, and timelines simply aren't. We aren't the only company facing this challenge. The entire board game industry is having very difficult conversations right now. For some, this might mean simplifying products or delaying launches. For others, it might mean walking away from titles that are no longer economically viable. And, for what I fear will be too many, it means closing down entirely."

EN Publishing -- "We at EN Publishing have four Kickstarters fulfilling (Voidrunner's Codex, Gate Pass Gazette Annual 2024, Monstrous Menagerie II, and Split the Hoard) which have been paid for, including shipping, by the customer already. Two of those (Voidrunner and Split the Hoard) involve boxes and components, which meant they were manufactured in China. The other two are printed in the EU (Lithuania, specifically). All four inventory shipments will arrive in the US after the tariffs come in. We haven't yet worked out exactly what that means, but it won't be pleasant."

Chaosium -- "First, we will certainly need to raise the price of our books and board games. We simply cannot afford to absorb the cost of these additional tariffs. We wish it were otherwise, but that’s just the reality of the situation. Second, this may result in delays. We need to look at potentially new manufacturing locations, new supply chains, etc. This may delay manufacturing of some anticipated products until we know how to deal with the changing environment."

Kobold Press -- "The short and sweet reality is that each hardcover printed outside the US will cost from 20% to 54% more to produce, and like a lot of TTRPG companies, we simply can’t absorb that tax hike and stay in business. The Steve Jackson Games statement makes it abundantly clear; while tariffs can be part of a national strategy, this is a very high, very sudden tax hike for a printing industry that doesn’t have a lot of US capacity. There’s no way to “just move” these projects to the US. So, prices are going up to allow game publishers to pay the new import taxes. There’s very little we can do about it. If you are unhappy with the price hikes, we strongly recommend that you contact you representatives in Congress."

The Arcane Library (Shadowdark)-- "The current tariffs, severe though they are, are not going to impact pricing or deliverabilty of [The Western Reaches]. We planned for this in our margins and can safely absorb the costs."

Evil Baby Entertainment (The Broken Empires) -- "Those of us living in the U.S. know that a whole bunch of new tariffs (read: taxes) have been levied on many imports. There’s no question that I’m going to get hit with at least an extra 20% tax on every product that comes in from my overseas manufacturers. I have heard horror stories about other Kickstarter creators who charged backers additional fees to cover such unanticipated costs. Rest assured: my backers will NOT be charged any additional fees. I will eat the cost of the tariffs myself. Not gonna lie, that’s gonna hurt — but we had a deal, and I have no intention of altering it in the face of this unwelcome development."

Stonemaier Games -- "65% of our sales are in the US, so this will take a heavy toll on Stonemaier Games. We’re fortunate that yesterday’s launch product, Tokaido, arrived in the US just before the original 20% tariffs took effect. We won’t be so fortunate when Vantage–a project I’ve worked on for 8 years–ships from China in May and June. I’m not sure yet what we’ll do about that... Manufacturing the types of games we make is not an option in the US. People have tried, even recently. Even if a company wanted to invest in the infrastructure to try to make it happen, the short-term losses from the tariffs will eat too deep into their cash to make it possible (plus, many of the machines used to make games are also made in China, so you’ll pay a huge tariff even if you invest in the machines needed to make games in the US). Plus, many publishers currently have print runs in production in China–it simply isn’t possible to change course for those print runs. So with costs (tariff taxes) due to skyrocket in a few months, prices will also significantly increase."

Coyote & Crow -- "Osiyo, friends. Not to make this all about Coyote & Crow, but yesterday's news from the US Gov may have some devastating impacts on C&C Games as a whole. A cumulative 54% import tariff on goods from China will essentially kill my company (and the games industry). Sadly, it's partially our own hobby's fault that we're in the worst position to weather this storm. For years, board games have operated on razor thin margins because many fans are resistant to price hikes. But even with the amazingly generous and awesome folks that support Coyote & Crow, we won't survive this. I'm not going to ask anyone to "dig deep" or to in any way stretch themselves to support us. We're /all/ going to be in bad shape in the coming months and years if this plays out like it look like it will. Instead, I'm going to do what Natives always do: we adapt, survive, and carry on. What that exactly means in this situation, I don't know, but I have ideas and in the coming months, I'll be working on those behind the scenes. For now, we have a "fair" amount of inventory of existing games here in the US and Canada, we'll continue working with our digital partners, and we'll be pushing on with Ahu Tiiko - if nothing else to at least get you the PDF. The fate of the print edition is up in the air for the moment, but I will get back to you and all of the backers as my options start to come into focus. I hope you all are planning for your own situations as best you can. We're going to need community to get through this. Stiyu (stay strong)."
 

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Same with Wisconsin in the 1980s. Kind of underscores how many kids either aren't listening in class or who forget what they learned.
Or how poorly they were taught. In the 90s, I had a math class in high school. I don't remember what type of math it was because the teacher spent over half the class, nearly every single day, talking about UFO-related conspiracy theories. I am not making this up. In retrospect, I'm shocked that this managed to continue throughout the entire semester without the higher-ups stepping in.

In a less stupid example, a poorly-funded school without many staff may have math classes taught by, say, the gym coach or art teacher--people who are good at what they actually know how to do but who aren't experts at math and who don't know how to teach math.
 

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I sincerely hope that they, and other companies that have to face similar problems, can coast by on pdfs and existing stock until things changes.
 

In a less stupid example, a poorly-funded school without many staff may have math classes taught by, say, the gym coach or art teacher--people who are good at what they actually know how to do but who aren't experts at math and who don't know how to teach math.
My high school's chemistry class was taught by the football coach - but he was a damn good chemistry teacher. (I guess he was a good football coach too. I never paid attention.) (Wasn't a poorly funded school, either.)
 

My high school's chemistry class was taught by the football coach - but he was a damn good chemistry teacher. (I guess he was a good football coach too. I never paid attention.) (Wasn't a poorly funded school, either.)
There can be a significant difference between a teacher who also coaches and a coach who also teaches. It's all in what their primary focus is and how conscientious they are with the kids in their care. Many teachers in my high school were also coaches of various athletics - and not just the gym teachers (of which we only had 2 - and there's need for a lot coaches than just two). Chances are, if they were good at one, they were usually good at the other too because they put in the effort to do it well. And if they were muddles at one, they were probably muddles at the other - again, because that was about the level they could manage.

Or how poorly they were taught. In the 90s, I had a math class in high school. I don't remember what type of math it was because the teacher spent over half the class, nearly every single day, talking about UFO-related conspiracy theories. I am not making this up. In retrospect, I'm shocked that this managed to continue throughout the entire semester without the higher-ups stepping in.
I can't say I ever had a teacher that incompetent - though my sister, a couple of years older than I, might have had one or two. Fortunately, they were gone before I had the chance to encounter them.
 

My high school's chemistry class was taught by the football coach - but he was a damn good chemistry teacher. (I guess he was a good football coach too. I never paid attention.) (Wasn't a poorly funded school, either.)
Unfortunately, I'm going to guess that that particular combination of expertise isn't as common as it should be.
 

Or how poorly they were taught. In the 90s, I had a math class in high school. I don't remember what type of math it was because the teacher spent over half the class, nearly every single day, talking about UFO-related conspiracy theories. I am not making this up. In retrospect, I'm shocked that this managed to continue throughout the entire semester without the higher-ups stepping in.

In a less stupid example, a poorly-funded school without many staff may have math classes taught by, say, the gym coach or art teacher--people who are good at what they actually know how to do but who aren't experts at math and who don't know how to teach math.

Sure, education varies as do those teaching. But living in the real world and something as simple as this is something most adults would encounter and or is easy to research if it truly is that IMPORTANT to them.

My 6th grade teacher was a complete ideological nutter, I found it strange but was too young to realize exactly what he was feeding us lol. I also had issues in Kindergarten when we moved to SC from Philadelphia and my mother moved us back 6 months later due to issues with how I was treated and how the teacher referred to me. But I still know how tariffs and trade wars work, at least at a basic level...and the cost of goods matters immensely to me, more so than "ideology" or what some politicians, or bad teacher tells me to believe. Finances and costs I would venture are something that affects us all.

I also had a great football coach who was first and foremost a Chemistry teacher...these things work both ways. Meaning often times someone has a degree in Chemistry but also enjoys coaching kids. Heck, the best teacher I ever had was a social studies teacher and also a professional NFL referee, Bill Reynolds <3 Dude was like my hero in middle school and inspired me to be a better student.
 

Sure, education varies as do those teaching. But living in the real world and something as simple as this is something most adults would encounter and or is easy to research if it truly is that IMPORTANT to them.
'Cept here's the problem: They're not taught how to research in schools because they have crappy teachers, or good teachers with crappy funding, or decent schools with crappy parents who don't want their children to be taught certain things (yes, this includes learning research skills), or good teachers with a number of crappy students who take their attention away from the students who want to learn, or good teachers, good schools, and good students but with crappy parents who can't be bothered to help the child learn, or even any of the above plus learning or developmental disabilities that may or may not get diagnosed and treated.

(I'm lucky in that I had parents who taught me how to think critically and how to research. I'm also lucky in that while both of my parents had jobs, they could do those jobs from home most of the time, so they had time to teach me.)

And that's without understanding that, quite frankly, things like tariffs are not actually important for most people 99% of the time. I was a supervisor in a day program for adults with developmental disabilities. The cost of trade goods meant less than nothing for that type of job, not when the most math involved in that job was trying to get people to realize they couldn't buy a 50 cent bag of chips for a nickel, and when I'm actually spending most of their time keeping people larger than me (and I'm 5'10") from going berserk and attacking frail people in wheelchairs.
 



On top of the tariffs, it's also a question of quality:
Price is, of course, an issue—as the bids we've received from the US-based companies we've asked to bid on projects were 3-4 times what it currently costs to print our games. But the key thing, sadly, is that even at hugely increased costs, the few US companies that can do SOME of the work that we need can't produce anywhere near the quality that we (and you) are used to with mass sophisticated game production in China.
and also:
One of the effects of these tariffs and the dialogue around them is that a lot of people who live outside of the US are angry at the US government right now, some even boycotting US products.
These companies are stuck with almost no way out. But I appreciate that they are looking at as many options as possible, including shipping directly from China to countries other than the US, so that their international customers don't get stuck with the tariff surcharge. I hope other companies consider doing the same. I won't give money to the US government's tariffs, but I will happily support any company that is making an effort to treat us with respect.
 

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