I’m going to be honest: a year ago, I didn’t even know what a tariff was. But now that they’ve become a central pillar of American foreign policy – for reasons nobody but the president himself seems to understand – I’ve grown a lot more informed on the subject. Last week’s ‘Liberation Day’ announcements didn’t just take the wind out of the sails of the Nintendo Switch 2 reveal, they set into motion a global chain of events that could impact practically everything Americans buy for the foreseeable future – including video games.
The tariff situation is far from settled, and as we’ve come to expect from this administration, everything could change completely at a moment’s notice. But as of now, it’s best to take this seriously, just as Nintendo has by delaying Switch 2 pre-orders, until we have more information.
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Nintendo Explains Why The Switch 2 Is So Expensive, And It Isn’t The Tariffs
Doug Bowser has explained why the Switch 2 costs so much more than the original Switch, and it isn’t Trump’s tariffs.
As a consequence of President Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs”, it’s predicted that the price of many imported goods will increase. Which goods and by how much is currently open to speculation, but if you’re considering making some purchases now to avoid paying more (and you don’t mind taking financial advice from an armchair economist who’s currently wearing Pikachu slippers) here are some of the gaming necessities that are currently at risk of heavy taxation.
PC Hardware
If you’re in the market for a new Nvidia RTX 50-series graphics card, well, you’ve got a couple of problems now. Finding them in stock is hard, finding them in stock for MSRP is even harder, and finding them in stock for MSRP before the tariffs take effect? That’s a tall order. Your best bet is to take a few vacation days off work and go camp out at your local Micro Center. Maybe bring a very, very long book.
GPUs aren’t the only hardware manufactured outside of the US. While some memory is produced in the US, Samsung and Hynix both manufacture in Korea. 80 percent of motherboards are made in either Taiwan or China, while hard drives and SSDs are typically manufactured in Malaysia, Thailand, China, or Singapore.
Basically, if you need PC parts, there’s a pretty good chance they’re going to be imported, which means they’ll be subject to new tariffs.
Handheld Emulators
It’s been pretty amazing to watch the handheld retro console boom over the last few years. Companies like Voacle and Retroid have been pumping out some really impressive devices at shockingly affordable prices. If you’re into emulating any kind of retro games, from Atari and Game Boy all the way up through the Wii, it’s easier and better than ever before.
Some of the most popular devices like the Retroid Pocket 5 currently go for around $220, while cheaper but still high-quality devices like the Anbernic RG40xx can be found for under $100 on Amazon. Both of these devices are made by Chinese companies, which the president just declared a 34 percent tariff on. There’s no guarantee these devices will remain this affordable for long.
Trading Card Games
Fortunately, a lot of Japanese TCGs are printed in the US now. The 24 percent tariff on Japan may not affect Pokemon cards, but there are a lot of TCGs that are imported directly from Japan. This includes Bandai games like One Piece, Digimon, Gundam, Flesh and Blood, and Weiss Schwarz. Altered comes from Paris, while the upcoming League of Legends TCG, Riftbound, is launching in China first; unclear if it will be printed state-side or imported.
Beyblades, both from Takara-Tomy and Hasbro, are manufactured in one factory in Japan.
Physical Games
Switch cartridges are manufactured by the Taiwanese company Macronix, hence Nintendo’s hesitancy to kick off pre-orders this week. As for PlayStation and Xbox games, pretty much all video game discs are manufactured in Mexico these days. If the 25 percent tariff sticks, analysts expect that either the cost will be passed down to the customers, or physical games will cease to exist altogether in favor of digital.
My intention isn’t to scare you into running out to buy as many games as you can, but being informed about where your products come from and how they might be affected by these tariffs is important. If you’re planning on buying an imported item, it might be a good idea to do it sooner rather than later. If you only want to buy stuff because you’re afraid of missing out on a good deal, that’s called FOMO, and you’re better than that.
Keep your eyes peeled as the tariff situation evolves, and if and when everything gets more expensive, at least you’ll know why it’s happening.
- Brand
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Nintendo
- Operating System
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Proprietary
- Storage
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256GB internal / MicroSD
- Resolution
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1080p (handheld) / 4K (docked)
- App Store
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Nintendo eShop
- Wi-Fi
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Yes