Nintendo’s 2nd reform week begins with a fun explosion (a tinkling, real sound) at Switch 2 Direct on Wednesday revealed the release date, the game of launch and the new release feature of the console. Donkey Kong exaggerated a lot on the internet, at least until the company’s newsletter started dripping to stores like Polygon and Shock Shock. Nintendo announced it would charge $ 450 for the control panel and $ 80 for its top game, Mario Kart (or $ 500 for two people to come together).
At the same time, President Trump announced the global trade plan was sweeping, including important tariffs for almost every country in the world – including uninhabited areas. Put simply, people start to panic to respond, and the stock market is the same. In news and on social media, both Trump’s and tax switches began the trend, marking the beginning of a very chaotic 48 -hour, in which the release of a very expected game panel and the sudden of the US President became closely linked to those who were interested in games, but also for the consumers of other media.
Tariffs will affect the cost of almost everything Americans buy, all stocks drop sharply and social services are removed. That may include the cost of Switch 2, a price that many people are dissatisfied before Nintendo announced that they would delay pre-order orders due to tariffs and development market conditions. Panic happened to fans: What will happen if Switch 2 is even more expensive than $ 450? That is on the head of a little scary: What will happen if there is not enough switch 2 to go around?
Business professor and author Joost Van Drunen said in an email sent to Polygon that the clear reference of Nintendo about the tariff in its statement is very unusual for the company and generally for the posture of the Japanese company. Traditionally, Japanese companies avoid commenting on foreign policy issues, which make this direct direct. By naming specific names instead of using vague language about ‘supply chain challenge’ or ‘global market conditions’, Nintendo is clearly signaling to shareholders and consumers that delays from external policies decisions. (Polygon approached Nintendo to comment but did not listen back to the press time.)
For a long time, there have been a few voices in the gaming community, who talk about keeping politics out of the game, which is a meaningless thing without critical thoughts to start. But that has never been more meaningless now: Trump’s trade war, completely literally, the games affect. And Nintendo also wants us to know that.
But that may not be because many of the favorite nostalgic producers of gamers are stance against Big Bad with us. It was a strategic decision (although I wouldn’t be surprised if the executives of Nintendo despised Trump privately for this decision and could even be others).
This is Nintendo’s isolation from criticism about their own implementation while gently educating their consumer basis on how the trade policy directly affects the available products and prices, according to Mr. Van Van Drunen. References on ‘development market conditions’ gives them the flexibility to make adjustments beyond the tariffs, capable of including competitive positioning compared to the PS5 Pro discount price or changing in the component.
Trump’s latest tariffs include an increase of 46% for Vietnam, the Nintendo site has moved most of her production a few years before Trump increased taxes on China. But Van Dreunen did not think that the possibility that Nintendo would increase the price of Switch 2 very close to the launch, which he said would be unprecedented.
Nintendo Nintendo needs time to assess whether their current price is $ 449.99 is still feasible, if their expected profit margin has been violated. The delay helps them to be flexible to ensure additional inventories before implementing potential tariffs, exploring alternatives to production or adjusting their marketing strategies. Most likely, Nintendo will maintain the announced price but capable of reducing the initial production volume or adjusting bundle services to conserve profit margins. Basically, they are buying time to make the most wise decision in a rapidly developing trade environment.
And while it was very attractive when taking out the outstanding expertise of Van Dreunen here as a sign that it was not so bad, he also said that the gaming industry tends to offer a decent beat for the rest of the economy.
The Nintendo period especially makes a feng shui excited because their audience is more misleading the main lines and targeting their families than competitors, which means their base of customers includes the average consumers who are most affected by strong economic winds, according to Van Van Drunen. In this case, Nintendo’s reaction to these tax rates provides a preview of how global companies with complicated supply chains will navigate increasing trade barriers – not by transferring instant costs to consumers, but by tactical delays and reassessing strategy.
The only thing we knew for sure was that much uncertainty would come in our way.
