Due to new tariffs, many more physical game discs may “simply not get made”

Analysts are warning that the Trump administration's recently implemented tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China could lead to price increases and supply issues for video game software and hardware in the United States.

The effects could be particularly pronounced for physical game discs, which are now overwhelmingly produced in Mexico. A 25 percent tax on discs shipped in from Mexico could lead to "a sharp downtick in the number of disc-based games that get released physically in the US," Circana analyst Mat Piscatella said on social media.

"It wouldn't surprise me to see physical games that would be subject to tariffs simply not get made, with pubs moving to an all digital strategy," Piscatella added recently. That would accelerate a trend that has been building for years, making disc-based releases a relative market niche.

Very small piece of all this, but it wouldn't surprise me to see physical games that would be subject to tariffs simply not get made, with pubs moving to an all digital strategy. What a mess. [image or embed] — Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social) March 4, 2025 at 8:21 AM

Game makers that do continue to produce physical discs would likely pass all or most of the cost from the new 25 percent tariff onto consumers, analysts agree. But Piscatella thinks that the tariffs could also increase the price of the downloadable versions of those games. Because publishers usually match non-sale prices across different platforms and formats, "the most likely scenario would be the price of digital games would be raised to be at parity" with the higher-priced physical versions, Piscatella said.

Domestic physical game disc production could theoretically move back to the United States, where it was based in the past. But Piscatella pointed out that such a move would take "significant investment" for a market segment that is "now half what it was in 2021 and declining rapidly." And disc makers would likely have to recoup that investment in US production in the form of higher prices, Piscatella added.