Trumps’ Tariffs Hit Gamers

The Left can capitalize with online and IRL organizing

Hat tip to Erik Balsbaugh, who organizes on Discord, for raising this issue

The Trump tariffs are likely to hit all parts of the economy, and gaming is no exception.

The Nintendo Switch 2 is set to launch on June 5th, in what Bloomberg has called “gaming’s biggest ever launch.” American gamers were excited—and preorders were supposed to start on April 9. However, those preorders were suddenly delayed by Nintendo last week “in order to assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions.” President Trump had just placed 24% tariffs on Japanese goods, and a 25% tariff on auto imports—both expected to hit Japan’s economy hard.

Gamers took to Reddit and other platforms to express their frustration (“When was the last time a US president fucked up your gaming enjoyment?”). Many speculated that the announced price of $450, already viewed as pricey, could go up substantially.

Video games are a big deal for young men. According to an industry survey, about three quarters of Gen Z and Millennial men play video games for an hour or more per week, and the average age of gamers is 36. YMRP’s survey in 2024 found that among men 18-29 who play video games, 54% do for 2 or more hours per day.

Gaming is also social. According to the Entertainment Software Association, 74% of players play with others, either online or in person. One of the biggest gaming conventions in the country is PAX East, which claims to draw 130,000 attendees, will be held May 8-11 in Boston. But there are hundreds of other conventions around the country, in every state. They are composed of people who commit a weekend to connecting with others who have a shared interest, often traveling and spending fair amounts of money to do so. It’s a culture and an identity. And just as churches and ethnic communities are powerful cultures for political organizing to tap into, so are gamers.

President Trump understands the power of culture: he famously appeared on Adin Ross’ Twitch stream and attended Sneaker Con. But gamers still tend to be left-leaning. Discord, a platform primarily used by gamers, was the most disproportionately Harris-supporting social network. Surveys have looked at the political views of users of different platforms and they tended to support Harris generally, with some variation.

While most gamer conversations and content are non-political, there are these rare times where something political breaks through into the discourse. The Left needs to have a strategy for harnessing those key moments which truly highlight the real world impacts of Trump policies. The Switch 2 story, Elon Musk cheating at video games, etc. are opportunities for organizing.

First, there should be organizers at gaming conventions and in Discord chat rooms making clear the connection between increasing cost and Trump’s tariffs. Major gaming influencers should be armed with talking points. Organizers can follow up with discussion about how the console’s use of Nvidia chips highlights the need for a domestic semiconductor industry, and that while Democrats passed the CHIPS Act, Trump wants to get rid of it. And gamers could call out Elon Musk, as one of Trump’s closest advisors and a gamer.

You’ve probably heard endlessly since the 2024 election that politics is downstream from culture, and that the Left has too often overlooked culture in recent decades. Building political awareness into self-organized cultural communities may be difficult, but it is worth a long-term commitment and it starts with these unique moments. The payoff, particularly in reaching a demographic like young men that have been hard to reach otherwise, could be huge.