Tariffs Hit the Gaming World With Nintendo Move

Gamers, meet tariffs. Nintendo has delayed pre-orders in the US of its new Switch 2 console because of the unexpectedly high tariffs imposed by President Trump this week, reports the BBC. "Pre-orders for Nintendo Switch 2 in the US will not start April 9 in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions," the Japanese company said in a statement. The delay is "one of the most significant immediate responses from a major company regarding the concerns about President Trump's tariffs and their impact on business and consumer spending," per CNBC.

The move affects only the US, and Nintendo still plans to release the console on June 5. It was to have cost $450 in America, and it's unclear if that might change. Japan got hit with a 24% tariff, and the nations where it made the enormously popular original Switch console also got hit hard: Vietnam, 46%, and China, 54% (taking previous tariffs into effect). The question now is whether Nintendo will pass along the increased cost of importing the device to the US to gamers. The New York Times notes that gaming companies often sell their hardware at a loss, figuring they can make up the money on software. (More Nintendo stories.)