Making online educational games

Fatwa ID: 02381

Answered by: Molana Muhammad Adnan

Question:

I'm a game developer, and i had a plan to sell my game. I've read your fatwaa regarding computer game which one is halal and which one is haram. But i've still got questions about it.

My game is an Education Real Time Strategy games that teach and train user in math, physics, chemistry, ecology, and business management. It contains problems to be solved on other to make the users understand the concept in science such as Calculus , mechanical engineering, etc. In my game there will be some fictional places (levels) and units (building, trucks, train, heavy equipment), but the unit like building factory, farm, transportation, plantation will be imitating those what we saw in real life. There are no music, or living things like animals, human, fantasy creature in my project. I'm trying to avoid any prohibited aspect from islamic teaching in my project.

My Question are:
– Is this type of game permissible for me to sell? if not please give me advice to makes it halal.
– Is it permissible to sell Education games that contains fictional but based on reality places like arbitrary farm, city, lakes, ocean, etc? considering that the purpose is to train the user to calculate the solution of problems based on as much conditions possible.
– Can you give me a concrete examples of what type of educational video games that is halaal for Muslims developer to sell? For examples like Cities Skylines, Sudoku, Transport Tycoon, Railroad Tycoon. Those are examples of games that i think halal because it is educational, no music (or even if there is, the music can still be turned off), no living things creation like human, animal, fantasy creatures etc. But i still want to know your opinion.
– Is it considered helping other in sin when i sell my products to Steam, Amazon Appstore, Google Play Store, Apple Appstore?
– Where can i get halal certification for my games? Can you provide the address or contact?

Answer

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

-If your educational video game is exactly as described above then it will be permissible. The key thing is that it shouldn’t have any elemants of Haram.

-Pictures/videos of nonliving souls are permitted. Saaiduna Ibn Abbas has said, I heard the Prophet of Allah saying, “Every painter will go to Hell, and for every portrait he has made, there will be appointed one who will chastise him in Hell.” Saaiduna Ibn Abbas said: If you have to do it, draw pictures of trees and other inanimate things. (Sahih Bukhari p.296 v.1)