CMON Hits Pause on New Games Amid Financial Struggles

Heavy U.S. tariffs are last straw as board game and miniatures giant freezes development and lays off staff, citing financial struggles, U.S. tariffs and economic uncertainty

CMON has long been a mainstay of popular board games

Board game publisher CMON has announced a sweeping freeze on all future game development and crowdfunding campaigns, accompanied by layoffs in its creative teams. The company cited global economic conditions—particularly recent tariffs—as the driving force behind the decision. CMON first signaled financial trouble in March with a projected loss of up to $2.1 million, and its shares were frozen on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in April after failing to file a 2024 financial report. A non-executive director has since resigned.

Despite these setbacks, CMON assured backers it remains committed to delivering existing projects. Currently managing 10 crowdfunding campaigns totaling $26.1 million and eight pre-order projects, CMON stated that all but two are still on track for delivery by the end of 2025. The publisher emphasized that the pause is a necessary step to stabilize operations and fulfill its promises, adding that development will resume “as soon as possible.”

Munchkin Dungeon was very successful on Kickstarter

In a statement issued to the gaming industry, CMON explained, "We did not make this choice lightly, and our thoughts are with everyone impacted. The industry continues to rapidly evolve, and unpredictable situations like the recent tariffs, or COVID just a few years ago, present challenges for everyone in board games."

Scooby-Do, Teen Titans Go! and Looney Tunes are recent titles released by CMON

"With that said, it is our responsibility to take these difficult measures to ensure that we can keep current projects on track and deliver them in a timely manner", CMON adds. "We will of course resume new development as soon as possible. Please rest assured that these decisions will help ensure that we keep our commitments to our backers, partners, and community."

This is just one example of the disastrous and perhaps insurmountable problems created for the U.S. board game industry by the massive tariffs imposed on goods coming out a China, a common source for printed game components and packaging. For more on these problems, check out an enlightening recent blog post on Board Game Geek here.