The Cost of Cardboard

How Tariffs Will Impact Board Game Publishers and Designers

A special report from Cardboard Edison, April 2025

President Trump’s policies imposing tariffs of more than 100% on imports from China will have far-reaching effects on the U.S. board game industry.

Few publishers own their own manufacturing facilities, and China has been the most affordable option for most of them for decades. At the same time, many publishers operate on thin margins, selling the biggest portion of their supply to distribution companies at a roughly 2x markup. That leaves little wiggle room to cover high tariffs in addition to their overhead costs.

So what impact will such high import taxes have on the U.S. tabletop industry? What are publishers doing in response? And what will it all mean for board game designers?

To find out, we at Cardboard Edison reached out to U.S. publishers from our Compendium directory, and we’ve compiled their responses into the following report. Taken together, their responses signal a dramatic shift in how board game publishers will operate under high tariffs—and a correspondingly altered landscape for game designers.

Methodology

Our survey was conducted April 9-11, 2025, when announced U.S. tariffs on China were above 100% but still in flux. 

We asked publishers: “If the U.S. maintains tariffs on China of 104% to 125% or more, we want to know how it would change your approach.” The announced high-end figure rose to 145% while our survey was still active.

We heard back from 62 publishers. Among them, 52 said they always print their games in China, while 9 said they do sometimes. A final publisher said they never manufacture in China, so their responses aren’t included in the data. This report is based on the 61 U.S. publishers who said they print in China all or some of the time.

Based on their self-reported profiles in our Compendium publisher directory, we divided the companies into three categories based on the size of their game catalog. There were 37 small publishers, or those with fewer than 10 released titles; 20 medium-size publishers, with between 10 and 49 titles; and 4 large publishers, with 50 or more published games.

We also categorized publishers by whether or not they indicated in their Compendium profiles that they were open to submissions from game designers: 34 were open to submissions and 27 weren’t. We modified the wording of certain questions for these two groups, and we indicate below where we’ve done so.

Publishers agree: Prices will go up.

The most consistent finding of our survey is that publishers almost universally say they would raise their prices if the tariffs on China continue.

About 90% said their prices would increase. Another 5% couldn’t say. The remaining 5% said their prices would stay the same or decrease. This overwhelming majority who predict higher prices holds true even when looking at different sizes of publishers and whether or not they’re accepting designer submissions.

For many publishers, it’s a simple question of math. They say they’ll be unable to absorb the full expense of high tariffs and that those greater costs will have to be passed along to purchasers, be they distributors or players. “There's no future for us under tariffs that doesn't involve increasing the prices of our games,” said Christopher O’Neal of Brotherwise Games.

Several publishers said that even if they shift production to someplace other than China, that will still lead to increased prices. After all, the higher cost of printing anyplace else in the world is why they were printing in China in the first place. In addition, even some publishers who don’t always go to China for their printing say they expect costs to rise due to President Trump’s tariffs on other countries.

“Almost all of my games are printed in the U.S. Still impacted by tariffs though, as the paper comes from Canada and ink from Asia. Cannot avoid tariffs in this industry,” said Tim Densham of Catastrophe Games and Valor Mountain Games.

Several publishers we heard from noted that the tariffs follow a period of high inflation and said they would therefore act as a “tipping point” for price hikes. “I was already planning to increase many prices due to inflation in 2025, but this will cause it to be earlier,” said Heather O'Neill of 9th Level Games.

One unresolved question is when price hikes could happen. Publishers indicated a range of possibilities.

Some said it could be later because they still have existing stock to sell through. “The stock of games currently on sale are all in the U.S. and these will not change, so our customer may not see any change for months or possibly a year,” said Dan Kobayashi of Ninja Star Games.

Others say it’s already happening. One publisher told us they raised prices on many of their games at the start of the month in anticipation of tariffs and to account for high inflation in recent years. In addition, some publishers such as Mayday Games and Van Ryder Games have already publicly announced plans for price increases.

“The unstableness of the economy makes it very difficult to arrive at game pricing that will make publishing a game viable as a small publisher,” said Diane Sauer of Shoot Again Games.

Bigger picture, many board game makers have argued for years that the value of a board game far surpasses other forms of entertainment on a cost-per-hour basis. As a result, some say publishers have historically charged too little for their products. If that’s so, the expected price adjustments could be a chance to reset players’ expectations for what fair pricing looks like.

“In my opinion, the industry has needed to charge more for product for a while. Indie creators are often scraping the bottom of the barrel to compete with larger companies,” said Matthew Hocker of Coo' Games. “Charge what you're worth. People in this industry work too hard and are too passionate to not be making enough to cover their incredible work *and* themselves.”

For game designers:

If there’s a silver lining for board game designers in this report, it’s here. The overwhelming majority of publishing contracts pay designers based on a sale price—be it wholesale, MSRP, or whatever the publisher gets paid. Higher prices under tariffs therefore should lead to higher royalties for most designers.

But left out of this potential upside will be designers whose contracts calculate royalty payments based on the publisher’s “net profit,” which is likely to get squeezed under tariffs. It’s yet another reason for designers to avoid payment schemes that are opaque and out of their control.

Most publishers say they’ll print fewer copies.

About two-thirds of the publishers we polled said they would order smaller print runs under sustained U.S. tariffs on China. Another 18% said they couldn’t say. We saw similar trends even when breaking down the data by publisher size and by their submissions policy.

The reason is that tariffs mean publishers need to have more cash on hand to cover the extra tax burden when placing an order. That makes it harder for them to commit to large print runs without a cushion of cash on hand.

A few publishers told us the lower margins they get by selling games into the distribution system makes that path less viable for their business. As a result, they expect to sell fewer games overall, hence the smaller print runs.

In addition, many publishers said they expect fewer players to be able to afford pricier games, especially if broader inflation picks up again under tariffs. “Price goes up, demand goes down, we print less,” said Ben Harkins of Floodgate Games.

A few tactics are emerging. Many publishers told us the size of their print runs will largely depend on how successful their games do on crowdfunding platforms. This approach also would let publishers set shipping costs further down the line, when they hope the tariff situation will be clearer. Several others said they would reduce initial print runs for new games and then print more later based on demand.

As a ripple effect for players, some publishers predict that fewer copies for sale will mean more periods where certain titles are out of stock and unavailable for players to buy. “While that is not great, it is preferable to tying up lots of cash in cardboard that sells slowly,” said AJ Porfirio of Van Ryder Games.

But the data also suggests that expectations for smaller print runs isn’t universal. A couple of publishers noted that larger print runs come with lower per-unit costs. If a publisher has the capital to do so, printing more games could help offset the cost of tariffs to some degree.

The big caveat with that approach, aside from the cash-flow issue, is that printing more games in an uncertain economic environment comes with the higher “inventory risk” hinted at above, where publishers can’t be so sure they’ll sell all the games they print.

“Tariffs are levied at import so that increases the amount of capital tied up in stock and risk of every single game sitting in a warehouse substantially,” said Alex Flagg of Crafty Games. “Board games already require a ton of liquid capital, due to the high cost of design and production and low margins, so the only way to stay nimble is to have less money tied up in stock.”

For game designers:

For designers, fewer copies printed means fewer copies sold. Which in turn means fewer people playing your game. Also, fewer royalties. If this comes to pass, publishers making fewer copies of your game would likely offset the bump in royalties you receive from higher prices as discussed above.

Most companies will delay their current games.

About 56% of publishing companies we polled said they expect to delay their current plans. This trend is true regardless of whether or not the publisher is talking about designs they’ve licensed or ones they’ve done in-house. 

In addition, the sudden shifts in U.S. tariff policy have led to widespread uncertainty among board game publishers. The 21% who can’t say what ongoing tariffs would mean for their current slate of games is the second-highest of any question we asked about in our survey.

A few publishers told us they lucked out and got their games into the U.S. just ahead of tariffs kicking in. Others missed their chance. 

“I currently have nearly $800,000 worth of games being manufactured in China right now, and almost $500,000 of those games are going to be headed to the USA in the next two months,” said Dave Beck of Paverson Games. “I'm honestly not sure what I'm going to do at this point, as I'm unable to pay a tariff at that level.”

In the face of that uncertainty, many publishers spoke of postponing their plans for crowdfunding campaigns. “We are currently delaying the launch of a long awaited Kickstarter so that we can properly price the game, as well as holding off on reprinting our flagship game, Fire Tower, while we wait to see what happens with the tariffs,” said Gwen Ruelle of Runaway Parade Games.

A few publishers said they’re planning crowdfunding campaigns for later in the year and are moving ahead in the hopes that the trade war will be resolved by then.

Similarly, several publishers with products already printed told us they’re putting games in storage in China to wait things out. Their hope is that by leaving the games sitting in warehouses, they’ll make their way to U.S. stores once things cool off. “I have four games in China ready to ship. It's not feasible to do so. We are just waiting,” said Dan Hundycz of DPH Games.

But some publishers say they don’t have that luxury. One told us they’re working against a contractual deadline for a game based on an intellectual property they’ve licensed. Others simply need the sales.

“We only have one game planned: Nature. We’ve been investing $200k/year in the development of this product for three years. It’s a make-or-break moment for our company,” said Dominic Crapuchettes, founder and owner of NorthStar Studio. “We have to release it. We don’t have any more runway.”

For game designers:

A couple of publishers noted that delays to publishing timelines could lead to issues with designers’ contracts. Publishing contracts typically include terms that define the circumstances in which the rights to the game return to the designer. “If the designers choose to take their designs back due to a contract expiration, that will be salt in the tariff wound,” said Marc Specter of Grand Gamers Guild.

Publishers will sign and release fewer new games.

Most publishers in our survey, 62%, said they’d slow down their plans for new titles if the tariffs continue. But we saw a significant difference when we asked publishers about their general release plans versus when we asked about plans to sign new games from outside designers.

For publishers who aren’t accepting submissions, 48% said they’d likely release fewer games under tariffs. But the impact is much stronger among publishers that are open to submissions: 74% of those said they’d sign fewer games.

“Where we used to consider only a very, very small number of new candidates at any time, that number is now approaching zero,” said Patrick Kapera of Crafty Games. “Something would have to be truly incredible to take on at this time.”

Beyond raising the bar for what gets signed, several publishers said they’ve fully stopped signing new games. “We’re likely putting a stop on our entire product pipeline for as long as tariffs make importing impossible to afford,” said Mike Mihealsick of Game Trayz Lab. “Anything over 60% is likely untenable for us.”

Many companies said in lieu of producing new games, they’ll double down on existing games with strong track records and built-in audiences. “Printing proven titles will be more important, as unproven ones create too much risk,” said Tucker Smedes of CardLords.

A final point: That small sliver of a bar in the first chart above, where one publisher is planning more games rather than less? That’s Lunarpunk Games, a new indie studio that just announced an experimental partnership-based sales model for quirky, small-batch games.

“We think more than ever people are going to want new, innovative, indie experiences,” said Lunarpunk’s Xoe Allred.

For game designers:

The trends here are worrisome for designers. That 74% figure above is the second-strongest finding in our survey, after price increases. And it’s worth reemphasizing: Nearly three-quarters of publishers who accept submissions say they’d sign fewer games under tariffs. Bottom line: Until the situation is resolved, it’s going to be harder to get your game signed.

Meanwhile, publishers are likely going to be looking for cost savings anyplace they can. When contracts are being drafted, designers’ royalties are certain to cross their minds as one spot where they might be able to save some money. In fact, one publisher who asked not to be named told us they might work “tariff stipulations” into contracts that would decrease the designer’s royalty percentages.

Card games are in. Dice games are out.

While many publishers told us they’d sign and release fewer new games under tariffs, many others said the bigger change would be to the kind of games they make.

We asked publishers what types of games they currently publish—from board, card, and dice games to eurogames, wargames, family games, and more—and the types they’d do if the tariffs on China persist. Their answers signal a broad retreat under tariffs. The average publisher identified 4.7 categories of games they currently make, but only 3.6 they’d make under tariffs.

Some categories could see a steeper drop-off than others. Card games, with lower manufacturing costs and higher margins, remain just as interesting to publishers under tariffs. But dice games and thematic games—which likely require lots of expensive components—become dramatically less appealing.

“This tariff will deter us from exploring larger, more expensive games,” said Dan Kobayashi of Ninja Star Games.

So which categories of games could see the biggest dips? The survey results show that if tariffs are ongoing:

• 19% fewer publishers say they’d make family games.

• 33% fewer publishers say they’d make gateway games.

• 36% fewer publishers say they’d make thematic games.

• 41% fewer publishers say they’d make dice games.

• And perhaps the most striking finding of our entire survey: 23% fewer publishers say they’d make board games under tariffs.

To underline that last point: That’s nearly one-quarter fewer publishers making board games. Such a shift—reported to us by publishers of all sizes from small to large—would be massive for the industry.

But in fact the numbers are even a little worse: A couple of respondents said they’re considering closing up shop entirely and would have selected “none” if we’d given them that option in the survey form. “We are uncertain whether we will continue to print games,” said Juli Bierwirth of Distant Rabbit Games. Added John de Campos of Terrible Games: “I’ve halted all business plans for the foreseeable future.”

The only category that saw any increase under ongoing tariffs was microgames. Two more publishers in our survey said they’d plan on making microgames under tariffs than currently do. This speaks to a broader shift that could be afoot:

A substantial minority of publishers, 41%, said they’d print smaller games under continuing tariffs on China. We saw similar numbers for publishers of all sizes and regardless of whether they’re accepting outside submissions.

The reason smaller games are so appealing? By the same math that makes all games more expensive under tariffs, any cost savings that publishers can find during production are likewise magnified. Using industry-standard markups, a game that costs $10 to print might retail for $100 under a 100% tariff. But if a game can be produced for $1 less, the sticker price might drop by as much as $10 to retail for $90.

That said, a large portion of respondents, 23%, said they can’t say how tariffs would affect the size of games they want to sign or release. This was the biggest area of uncertainty in our survey.

Further complicating the picture, many publishers told us they won’t change their focus at all and will still make the same kinds of games their customers expect, just with higher prices. “We'll be taking a closer look at number and cost of components, but we'll still stay true to our brand in terms of types of games and game play,” said Anne-Marie De Witt of Fireside Games.

For game designers:

Designers may find that their smaller designs are more appealing to cash-strapped publishers, though this trend varies a lot by company. So even more than usual, try and get a sense of the kinds of games a publisher’s interested in before launching into a pitch.

And one additional finding for designers: Publishers in our survey that aren’t accepting submissions were more likely to signal a retreat from certain categories of games. To be sure, for publishers accepting submissions, the trends discussed above are the same, they’re just more muted. So don’t give up all hope on that dice game just yet.

Publishers strategize: ‘Everything is on the table.’

Beyond the size and types of games they make, we also asked publishers whether they were considering shifting toward other formats for their titles, such as digital implementations and print-and-plays.

A variety of approaches to format are under consideration. About 16% signaled a shift toward digital, while 13% said they’d likely shift toward PNPs. A couple of publishers said they would be looking at making game books. Another is considering print on demand.

But ultimately, two-thirds of respondents said their games’ format will remain pretty much the same. Publishers have already been adapting their titles to new formats for the past few years. If anything, tariffs seem likely to push a few of them further in that direction. But several respondents said they remain board game purists, believing the tactile experience is essential to tabletop gaming.

There are also practical limits to consider with any change in format. A couple of publishers noted that it isn’t easy to go into digital. “It's a completely different skill set and target market for making digital games versus physical games, so I doubt many publishers could make that pivot,” said Brian Henk of Pull the Pin Games.

Beyond format, publishers are looking into a range of other strategic options to weather tariffs:

• Many said they’re investigating printing options outside of China, despite the well-documented pricing and capacity hurdles.

• Many said they’d shift toward direct customer sales, in particular through crowdfunding, though they acknowledge this would be bad for retail and distributor partnerships. “We would not be able to work with retailers at all, or lose our margins,” said Jono Naito-Tetro of DVC Games.

• One noted that U.S. publishers could emphasize working with international partners to earn tariff-free royalties from localized editions of their games.

• Another said they’re selling their services in game development and rules writing to other companies.

“If this level of tariffs persist in the long term, everything is on the table,” said Crafty’s Alex Flagg.

But perhaps the most common strategy we heard was referred to by various similar phrases: “Wait and see.” “Turtle mode.” “Hibernate.” Many publishers said they’re waiting as long as they can to make any major strategic decisions. It’s unclear how long the U.S. tariffs on China will be in effect, and publishers expressed a range of predictions for how long it’ll last.

“I can afford to be patient and wait just a bit, but if tariffs with China do not lower in the next three months or so, I will have to reevaluate the company as a whole,” said Chris Kirkman of Dice Hate Me Games.

“These tariffs will be devastating to our industry,” said AnnaMaria Phelps of Violet Daisy Games. “I hope the community can help rally around publishers large and small to continue to produce fun, unique experiences for lovers of all things tabletop.”

About Cardboard Edison

Cardboard Edison is a board game design studio and website run by the husband-and-wife game design duo Chris & Suzanne Zinsli. Their published games include Ceylon, Cobras, Tessen, and Retail Rejects, the official Flip the Table podcast card game. Since 2012, they have run a curated board game design tips blog, which has expanded into various other game design-related areas, including an annual award for unpublished game designs, a directory of board game publishers, industry infographics and interviews, and a podcast on the stories behind board games.

Photo by Yoav Aziz on Unsplash.