Fatwa ID: 09434
Answered by Muftiyah Maryam Badshah
Question:
Assalāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāh,
I hope you are well. I try my best to fulfill my religious obligations and avoid anything doubtful, so I wanted to ask about the permissibility of a specific video game.
The game is Plants vs. Zombies. In the game, fictional cartoon-style “zombies” come out of the ground or from graves, and the player uses plants with different abilities to stop them from entering a house. Everything is animated, unrealistic, and obviously fictional—there is no story involving real magic, necromancy, or religious themes. It is simply a strategy game.
My question is: Is playing a game like this considered kufr or impermissible in Islam? More generally, are games that include fictional “zombies” or imaginary creatures allowed or playing these games having zombies kufr or not?
I would appreciate guidance on whether such games are safe to play or if they should be avoided.
JazākumAllāhu khayran.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
Answer:
It is important to note that Kufr (apostasy) occurs when a person verbally denies or mocks the religion willingly, has thoughts of disbelief that they decide are true, or they decide to become a disbeliever. Disbelief is not done by mistake, and neither is Islam removed by doubtful situations or obsessive thoughts (waswasah). Although it would be better to not play a game with images of animated humanoid beings when alternative games are available, it would not be considered shirk or kufr for you to play such a game as it does not have religious themes and neither does it lead you to believe or endorse other religions. Keep in mind that the game should be avoided if it leads you to not fulfil your obligatory religious duties or responsibilities.
Only Allah ﷻ knows best.
Written by Muftiyah Maryam Badshah
Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah
Darul Ifta Birmingham
References:
وَالتِّمْثَالُ خَاصٌّ بِمِثَالِ ذِي الرُّوحِ وَيَأْتِي أَنَّ غَيْرَ ذِي الرُّوحِ لَا يُكْرَهُ…
وَظَاهِرُ كَلَامِ النَّوَوِيِّ فِي شَرْحِ مُسْلِمٍ الْإِجْمَاعُ عَلَى تَحْرِيمِ تَصْوِيرِ الْحَيَوَانِ
Raddul Muhtār (Vol.1, pg.647, Dār Al-Fiqr)
وَيُكْرَهُ التَّشَبُّهُ بِهِمْ فِي الْمَذْمُومِ وَإِنْ لَمْ يَقْصِدْهُ كَمَا مَرَّ (قَوْلُهُ مَنْصُوبَةٍ) أَيْ بِحَيْثُ لَا تُوطَأُ وَلَا يُتَّكَأُ عَلَيْهَا قَالَ فِي الْهِدَايَةِ: وَلَوْ كَانَتْ الصُّورَةُ عَلَى وِسَادَةٍ مُلْقَاةٍ أَوْ عَلَى بِسَاطٍ مَفْرُوشٍ لَا يُكْرَهُ لِأَنَّهَا تُدَاسُ وَتُوطَأُ، بِخِلَافِ مَا إذَا كَانَتْ الْوِسَادَةُ مَنْصُوبَةً أَوْ كَانَتْ عَلَى السِّتْرِ لِأَنَّهَا تَعْظِيمٌ لَهَا (قَوْلُهُ وَالْأَظْهَرُ الْكَرَاهَةُ) لَكِنَّهَا فِيهِ أَيْسَرُ لِأَنَّهُ لَا تَعْظِيمَ فِيهِ وَلَا تَشَبُّهَ مِعْرَاجٌ، وَفِي الْبَحْرِ قَالُوا: وَأَشَدُّهَا كَرَاهَةً مَا يَكُونُ عَلَى الْقِبْلَةِ أَمَامَ الْمُصَلِّي، ثُمَّ مَا يَكُونُ فَوْقَ رَأْسِهِ ثُمَّ مَا يَكُونُ عَنْ يَمِينِهِ وَيَسَارِهِ عَلَى الْحَائِطِ، ثُمَّ مَا يَكُونُ خَلْفَهُ عَلَى الْحَائِطِ أَوْ السِّتْرِ
Raddul Muhtār (Vol.1, pg.648, Dār Al-Fiqr)
وَلَا بَأْسَ بِالشِّطْرَنْجِ وَهِيَ رِوَايَةٌ … عَنْ الْحَبْرِ قَاضِي الشَّرْقِ وَالْغَرْبِ تُؤْثَرُ
وَهَذَا إذْ لَمْ يُقَامِرْ وَلَمْ يُدَاوِمْ وَلَمْ يُخِلَّ بِوَاجِبٍ وَإِلَّا فَحَرَامٌ بِالْإِجْمَاعِ
Raddul Muhtār (Vol.6, pg.394, Dār Al-Fiqr)