How these new tariffs will leave an impact on US gamers

These US tariffs may not directly impact the countries where many game developers are based, but they will have a noticeable impact on physical media.

Matt Buckley

March 5, 2025 10:39

Source: Grand Theft Auto 6, Developer: Rockstar Games

This week, the US government has imposed tariffs on its neighbors, Mexico and Canada, as well as further tariffs on good from China. This will no doubt have long-lasting impacts on the world economy as well as the United States relationships with those countries. But how will it impact video games? Many large developers and publishers are based in the US or other countries like Japan, but don’t let that fool you that they will be unaffected. These tariffs could have a larger impact on the wider world of gaming than you might think

Do US video game buyers need to worry about these new tariffs?

This year is a pivotal moment in gaming for many reasons. More and more gamers are buying digital. Console sales continue to decline, while Steam set a new concurrent player record a few days ago amid the launch of Monster Hunter Wilds. Looking ahead, much of the hope for console sales rests on two main things. The Nintendo Switch 2, announced in January, if it is anywhere near as popular as its predecessor, should make a huge splash when that arrives later this year. Also on the schedule for 2025 still is Grand Theft Auto 6. Of course, everyone always talks about how big a deal this is, but do not underestimate its power. The launch of this game is expected to be the largest entertainment media launch in history. If anything can move consoles off the shelf it’s Grand Theft Auto.

Now, these tariffs come into play. While they are not going to directly impact the work of the developers and publishers of games, they will have an impact on physical media. According to Daniel Ahmad, the Director of Research and Insights at Niko Partners, in a post on Bluesky, “China is where most hardware continue to be manufactured, same for Mexico with discs.” Ahmad goes on to say that “75% of consoles imported to the US are from China.” The tariffs will make it more costly to import that hardware. What remains to be seen is if the companies decide to take that cost, or if they pass it on to US consumers. I won’t be holding my breath.

When it comes to physical game discs, which are mostly manufactured in now tariffed Mexico, this could end up being the final nail in the coffin for many publishers simply choosing to go digital. These days, it’s hard to look at the comments of an indie game’s social media post without someone replying asking about a physical version. These tariffs make that harder to pull off across the board. Small studios and publishers may be less likely to be able to afford to create a physical version of their games, and larger publishers might see it as an opportunity to cut costs and just focus on where most of their revenue already comes from: digital.

As gamers slip further and further into a world where we are buying licenses to play our games rather than buying them outright, this is a worrying sign of furthering the trend. These days when it comes to game preservation, sometimes buying physical isn’t even a solution. Look at the issue with Ubisoft’s The Crew, which saw even physical owners lose access to the game when servers shut down last year. As this trend continues to grow, it’s now more than ever that we need to put ways to preserve games in place. It’s becoming all too easy for publishers to simply shut it all down and make it inaccessible.

Thanks to these tariffs, the Nintendo Switch 2 might cost US buyers more of their hard-earned money. Maybe the physical version of Grand Theft Auto 6 will end up being $100. But ultimately, this will most likely lead to a further push to buying digital, and gamers having less and less agency in the ownership and control of the games they play.

So, to answer the above question simply, yes, you do.