任天堂與神遊的合作失敗，是中國遊戲市場早期歷史中頗具代表性的案例，其背後涉及政策環境、盜版問題、硬體技術、遊戲陣容以及跨國企業管理策略的多重因素。神游機最終成為“生不逢時”的產品，既反映中國市場當時的制度限制，也揭示本土化嘗試與母公司保守策略之間的矛盾。

從政策與市場環境來看，這是神遊機失敗的最核心原因。當時中國對電子遊戲的審批制度尚不成熟，遊戲要合法發行必須通過漫長而不透明的審核流程。許多遊戲因申請流程繁複而延遲數年，甚至無法上架，導致正版遊戲難以流通。與此同時，盜版問題極為猖獗，神遊機剛上市不久即遭破解，各類遊戲被非法複製與散佈。這使得玩家對正版遊戲的吸引力下降，也讓許多協力廠商遊戲開發商（如寶可夢系列）出於版權擔憂，拒絕授權中文化版本，進一步削弱神遊機在市場上的競爭力。

產品自身的問題也不容忽視。神遊機的硬體技術基於1996年的任天堂64（N64），對於2000年代初的玩家而言，顯得過時，被戲稱為“洋垃圾”。遊戲陣容更是稀少，最終僅有大約15款中文化遊戲可供玩家選擇，無法形成吸引大眾的核心內容。此外，購買遊戲的便利性也存在問題。早期玩家必須前往所謂的“神遊加油站”購買遊戲，而這些實體管道分佈有限，線上服務未能及時補足，導致用戶體驗不佳。

策略與管理上的分歧進一步加劇問題。神遊試圖為中國市場進行本土化，包括漢化遊戲和推出適合本地玩家的內容，但日本母公司對中國市場態度保守，不願大幅開放授權與合作，造成許多漢化遊戲無法順利推出。此外，合作後期的管理模式逐漸趨向日式官僚化，初期活力消失，員工缺乏成就感，運營逐步走向“養老”模式，缺乏推動市場擴張的動能。

在這些因素的綜合作用下，神遊機銷量持續低迷，最終於2006年停產。雖然神游在任天堂DS與3DS時代仍有嘗試進入中國市場，但由於早期的挫敗，對市場的熱情逐漸冷卻，策略也更加謹慎。直到後來中國解除遊戲機進口禁令，任天堂才得以以更成熟的方式重新進入中國市場，並在本土化與正版保障上採取更謹慎與規劃完善的策略。

整體而言，神遊機的失敗並非單一因素造成，而是政策障礙、盜版泛濫、硬體落後、遊戲陣容不足以及跨國企業管理與本土化策略不匹配等多種因素交織的結果。這個案例對後續任天堂進入中國市場的策略、合作模式以及對正版保障的重視，都具有深刻的歷史啟示意義，也反映出中國早期遊戲市場的制度挑戰與玩家需求之間的張力。

The failure of Nintendo’s collaboration with Shenyu (iQue) represents one of the most illustrative cases in the early history of China’s video game market, involving a complex interplay of policy restrictions, rampant piracy, hardware limitations, game library deficiencies, and corporate management strategies. The Shenyu console ultimately became a product “born at the wrong time,” reflecting both the institutional constraints of the Chinese market at the time and the tension between local adaptation efforts and the conservative strategy of Nintendo’s Japanese parent company.

From the perspective of policy and market environment, this was the most critical factor behind Shenyu’s failure. At that time, China’s approval system for electronic games was underdeveloped, and the legal release of games required navigating long, opaque, and unpredictable approval procedures. Many titles experienced multi-year delays or were entirely blocked from release, making it extremely difficult for legitimate games to circulate. At the same time, piracy was rampant. Soon after its launch, the Shenyu console was quickly hacked, and its games were widely pirated. This undermined the appeal of legitimate titles and led numerous third-party developers, such as those behind the Pokémon franchise, to refuse licensing their games for Chinese-language releases, further weakening Shenyu’s competitive edge in the market.

The product itself also faced significant shortcomings. The Shenyu console’s hardware was based on Nintendo 64 (N64) technology from 1996, which, by the early 2000s, was considered outdated by gamers and earned the derisive nickname “foreign trash.” Its game library was extremely limited, ultimately offering only about fifteen titles in Chinese localization, which failed to attract a broad audience. In addition, purchasing games was inconvenient: players had to visit the so-called “Shenyu Gas Stations” to buy cartridges, which were sparsely distributed, and the online services were insufficient to compensate for this scarcity, further degrading the user experience.

Strategic and managerial disagreements further exacerbated the situation. Shenyu attempted to localize content for the Chinese market, including translating games into Chinese and producing market-appropriate content. However, Nintendo’s Japanese headquarters maintained a conservative stance, showing reluctance to expand licensing and cooperation. Consequently, many localized games were never released. Moreover, in the later stages of the collaboration, Shenyu’s management gradually became increasingly bureaucratic and Japanese-style in approach, causing early enthusiasm to dissipate, employee morale to decline, and operations to drift into a “maintenance” mode rather than actively pursuing market growth.

As a result of these combined factors, Shenyu’s sales remained dismally low, and the console was ultimately discontinued in 2006. While Shenyu continued to attempt market entry during the Nintendo DS and 3DS eras, its early setbacks had cooled enthusiasm for the Chinese market, and the company adopted a more cautious strategy. It was only after China lifted the ban on game console imports that Nintendo was able to re-enter the market in a more mature and carefully planned way, implementing strategies that better addressed localization, piracy prevention, and official licensing.

In sum, the failure of the Shenyu console was not due to a single factor but rather a convergence of policy obstacles, widespread piracy, outdated hardware, insufficient game library, and a mismatch between cross-national management and local adaptation strategies. This case offers important historical lessons for Nintendo’s later approach to the Chinese market, particularly in terms of collaboration models, protection of legitimate game distribution, and balancing global strategies with local regulatory realities. It also vividly illustrates the tension between early institutional constraints in China’s gaming industry and the expectations and demands of local players.