A Review of Games: Agency as Art by C. Thi Nguyen

Frontiers of Discourse Studies

FDS, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2026, pp. 148-152.

Print ISSN: 3106-809X; Online ISSN: 3106-8103

Journal homepage: https://www.fdsjournal.com

DOI：Https://doi.org/10.64058/fds260113rgaac 

《游戏：能动性的艺术》评介 

常怀文 (Chang Huaiwen)

摘要：本文是对《游戏：能动性的艺术》(Games: Agency as Art, Oxford University Press, 2020) 的评介。该书由美国越南裔哲学家阮思慈 (C. Thi Nguyen)所著，是西方游戏研究最新的、较有影响力的成果。本文首先简要介绍该书内容，随后在西方游戏理论谱系中考察其贡献与不足，并从传统中国哲学的游戏观出发进行反思。

关键词：游戏；能动性；艺术；游戏美学

作者简介：常怀文，博士研究生，华南理工大学外国语学院，研究方向：文艺理论，游戏研究。电邮：chw1551@foxmail.com

Title: A Review of Games: Agency as Art by C. Thi Nguyen

Abstract: This article is a review of Games: Agency as Art (Oxford University Press, 2020). The book is by Vietnamese American philosopher C. Thi Nguyen and represents one of the most recent and influential contributions to Western game studies. This article begins with a brief overview of the book’s contents, then examines its contributions and limitations within the broader genealogy of Western game theory, and finally reflects on it from the perspective of traditional Chinese philosophical conceptions of play and games.

Keywords: Game; Agency; Art; Game aesthetics

Author Biography: Chang Huaiwen, Ph.D. Candidate, School of Foreign Languages, South China University of Technology. His research interests include literary theory and game studies. E-mail: chw1551@foxmail.com

Received: 08 Apr 2026 / Revised: 03 Jun 2026 / Accepted: 09 Jun 2026 / Published online: 15 Jun 2026 / Print published: 30 Jun 2026