You’re Killing Me, Tariffs

On April 2, 2025, Trump announced the largest tariffs on imports we have ever seen. In addition to sweeping tariffs from all imports, there will now be a 54% import tax on goods imported from China. 

This is the third tariff shift in less than 100 days — odds are there will be more, and the chances are high that they will be even more aggressive. 

We print our games in China. Most of the tabletop industry prints in China. There’s a reason for it — China is really, really good at it. They have the infrastructure set up for it, and they’ve been doing it for a long time. Since the early 2000s, the US has been outsourcing its printing to China and many great tabletop printers have sprung up because of this. The one we work with the most is Panda Manufacturing, and they not only do exceptional work, they also employ skilled American workers who help us with project management, pre-press quality control, green initiatives, and more.

A quick reminder here that a tariff is a tax WE pay — your friendly, neighborhood game makers. NOT China. Which means that we are now responsible for paying 54% more to produce our games. 

So, what are our options?

1. Move our manufacturing arm to another country? Nope. Trump enacted sweeping tariffs that apply to all imports now. And even if we could find another printer, there’s no guarantee they would be cheaper or of the same quality we’ve been getting.

2. Print in the good ol’ USA! Nope. This simply is not viable in the US — and any company in the US that could get the same quality at a scale we need would be prohibitively expensive. The US just doesn’t have the infrastructure that other countries have for this kind of work. AND, even if we did have the factories, the materials the US factories would use would also likely be imported.

3. Raise prices??? We could. But we risk losing business. Our customers and retail stores rely on us making affordable games. This isn’t something we want to do — but we may have to in the future.

There is, however, a fourth option. It’s not perfect, but it’s worth a shot.

We’re going to put a tip section in our check-out screen.

It’s optional. It’s open-ended. If you feel like tipping, we’d love that. Even a couple extra dollars added to every purchase makes a big difference for an independent game studio like us. If you don’t wanna tip, however, that’s fine.

Does it feel a little weird putting a tip section in our check-out screen? Yes! We shouldn’t have to do this, but our margins were thin to begin with and these tariffs could potentially drive us out of business. They could drive our friends (your friends) out of business. In the words of the great Oscar Wilde, “they totally fu*king suck.”

So, what are your options?

1. If you can, please leave a tip when you check out. We’re trying desperately to keep our costs low and this may help us maintain that low cost — at least for the time being.

2. Buy games. Yes, we’d love it if you bought OUR games, obviously, but this is bigger than us. Please, please, please support game makers and places where games are sold. We need you now more than ever.

3. Write to your representatives. The more outraged voices they hear, the more pressure they will feel to rebuke these tariffs. 

Our commitment to you is that we will always make the best games we're able to, at the lowest prices possible. And only with your help can we continue to do this.

Thanks for reading.

PBG