“A Definition of Enchantment”: A New Approach to the Analysis of Magic Systems in Fantasy Games

Game scholars have critiqued ludic magic systems for their rational, quantifiable, and wonderless nature. Yet, despite the magic system's prevalence in modern games, the field of game studies lacks a formal theoretical framework to analyze how these systems—and the framing fictions they inhabit—go about articulating a sense of enchantment to players. To address this gap, this article proposes a novel method for close-reading ludic magic systems based on Antoine Faivre's “definition of enchantment” from the field of Western esotericism. The article describes examples of Faivre's four esoteric qualities—correspondences, living nature, imagination and mediations, and experience of transmutation—as they appear across twelve different games. These examples illustrate how the logics of premodern enchantment, which underlie ludic representations of magic, can evoke awe and wonder in the player by providing alternative ways to knowing and being in fantasy gameworlds.