Playing games that include interest or drawing of cross

3-5-2016 | IslamWeb

Question:

Assalaamu alaykum. I have three question about games:
1. I am playing a game about farming, and the games gives the player loans with interest (it is not real money). So is this allowed?
2. How about games that have first aid kits that have the red cross on them, are those allowed?
3. There are games that have blocks and triangles and other type of stuff for building, and there are some items that you can use to build stuff; some have a cross on them; is one allowed to play this game without using the cross ?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

In principle, it is permissible to play electronic games if they are free from religious prohibitions; meaning that they should not preoccupy the person from his religious duties and obligations, they should be free from anything that may offend the correct creed, they should be free of gambling and music and should not contain an affirmation to polytheism, nor prohibited matters, nor glorify the slogans of disbelief and falsehood, and they should not lead to enmity and hatred between those who play them. For more benefit, please refer to fataawa 83778and 86146.

Therefore, it becomes obvious that the games that simulate dealing with interest are not permissible to play.

Similarly, one should avoid to play with the games that clearly show the cross. Ibn ‘Uthaymeen said, “We must spare our children from all that includes a cross, regardless of whether it can be seen on computers or on small toy cars that children play with, as you can find a cross on the side or the back of some of them; indeed, we must spare our children from all of this.”

For more benefit, please refer to fatwa 188149.

As regards your third question: there is nothing wrong in playing with that game as long as one can avoid the cross.

Allaah knows best.