Nintendo’s actions experienced a significant fall, which fell by 9.22% in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, marking the greater decrease of one day of the company since August 2024. The sudden decrease in value occurs in the midst of the growing concerns that the rates proposed in the United States could have a substantial impact on sales of consoles and physical software. The United States remains the largest market for Nintendo, which makes any financial tension of commercial policies particularly worrying for the company.
The industry analyst Serkan Toto shared the development in social networks, highlighting that investors’ fears on possible costs related to the rate are promoting uncertainty within the games sector. The concern extends beyond Nintendo, since analysts warn that tariffs can push the industry even more towards digital distribution.
Tariffs could accelerate change to digital games
Recent commercial policies introduced by former president of the United States, Donald Trump, have led to significant speculation about their potential impact on the game industry. According to proposed rates, imports from Mexico and Canada will face a 25%tariff, while China’s assets will be subject to an additional 10%rate, which will raise the total to 20%.
According to Mat Piscatella de Circana, tariffs could greatly affect the production of physical video games, particularly in North America. He pointed out in Bluesky that Mexico plays a key role in manufacturing physical games for the region. The increase in costs associated with the importation of these products can discourage editors to produce physical editions, accelerating the transition from industry to digital distribution.
Beyond the software, tariffs also represent risks to games hardware. China remains an important manufacturing center for consoles, GPUs and other essential components. The analyst Daniel Ahmad said that, despite the efforts of the industry to mitigate cost increases, financial burden could be transmitted to US consumers. This could lead to higher retail prices for both physical games and hardware, further changing consumers to digital purchases.
The transition far from physical media has been a growing trend in recent years, and editors favor digital sales due to the highest profit margins and reduced production costs. If tariffs increase physical copies prices, this trend could accelerate significantly, making records based on discs less accessible.
While the total impact of these rates remains uncertain, concerns are increased on affordability and accessibility, particularly for collectors and players who prefer to have physical copies. Continuous changes in commercial policy can remodel the distribution panorama of the game industry in the coming years.
