Wingspan Creator Fights Back: Suing Trump Over Costly Tariffs

by

Summary

  • Stonemaier Games joins a lawsuit against President Trump over tariffs.
  • The company claims the tariffs could cost it nearly $1.5 million.
  • Stonemaier Games seeks to avoid raising prices for customers by finding ways of dealing with the tariffs.

Stonemaier Games, a well-known board game manufacturer based in St. Louis, MO, intends to participate in an upcoming lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump concerning international tariffs that the company leadership perceives as threatening the financial stability of their employees. This compact tabletop firm, renowned for its 2019 bird-themed board game “Wingspan,” is voicing opposition to the president’s trade policies and is taking additional steps to remain viable in the face of these tariffs.

Established in 2012, Stonemaier Games is particularly renowned for games like Wingspan, Wyrmspan, and Finspan, among others. The original Wingspan and its extensions have garnered numerous Game of the Year and Expansion of the Year accolades, with over 600,000 copies of the base game sold by March 2021. In 2024, Stonemaier Games acquired the rights to Funforge’s Tokaido Japanese world-building game franchise as well.

On their official website, Stonemaier publicly declared they are part of a collective lawsuit against President Trump. This lawsuit questions whether the presidential office has the authority to impose tariffs. Currently, due to a 145% tariff on Chinese goods, for every $10 spent on manufacturing costs, Stonemaier claims they must pay an extra $14.50 to transport products from China to the U.S., equating to approximately $1.5 million in additional expenses. Although the specific law firm leading this lawsuit is not disclosed, it’s stated that the suit currently has as many joint plaintiffs as it can accommodate. This announcement mirrors the stance against tariffs taken by Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo during Trump’s first term.

Wingspan’s Creator is Suing Donald Trump Over Tariffs

It appears that the potential for a lawsuit might be having an effect. Today, national news sources are sharing Trump’s declaration about significant reductions in tariffs against China, with the intention of reaching a fresh trade agreement. In the interim, Stonemaier is depending on around 35% of its sales from outside the U.S. and is keeping most of its inventory in China at present. Rises in prices due to tariffs are prevalent, however, Stonemaier’s statement indicates that company leaders will make an effort to prevent price hikes. They plan to offer their upcoming exploration game Vantage to U.S. customers without increasing the predetermined price, but with a checkout option that allows buyers to cover the tariff cost on behalf of the small business if they choose to do so.

It’s not just tabletop games that have been impacted by Trump administration’s tariffs; video game publishers are also being cautious about the U.S. market. For instance, Nintendo initially did not offer pre-orders in the United States when introducing the Switch 2, but they will start on April 24 now. Moreover, Square Enix has paused pre-orders for some gaming merchandise in the United States due to tariffs, stating that these taxes were the reason behind their action.

Read More

2025-04-24 01:54