Are Video Games Haram?

Video games are generally not haram unless they contain nudity, violence, or anything contrary to Islamic beliefs and they do not interfere with doing all of a Muslim’s obligatory tasks.

Games are a major part of our century and youth have been addicted to some games like PUBG and other shooting games. Video gaming is not haram but it can be. We will discuss all the possibilities so a Muslim can decide which games are allowed and which are not in Islam.

Why Are Video Games Haram?

Muslims are created by Allah and sent to this earth for a specific purpose: to accomplish specific responsibilities and live their lives in accordance with Islamic rules. In the end, it’s all a test.

A Muslim can be distracted from executing his or her daily Islamic duties or responsibilities by playing video games. This is one of the primary reasons why scholars believe video games are haram.

A Muslim must pray five times every day. What if the Muslim is addicted to video games and ignores his or her daily prayers because of it? The video game will be ruled haram in this situation.

Let us consider another situation. Taking care of your parents is a major task of every Muslim irrespective of gender. What if one Muslim is involved in video games to such an extent that he or she forgets to care for loved ones? Again in this case video games will be considered haram.

It all depends on the Muslim and how the video games are being played. If a Muslim plays video games and performs all the daily tasks Islam asks then video games are halal. Islam never prohibits fun unless anything goes against Islam.

Obviously, any video game which includes nudity and violence will be considered haram for sure as all these things are prohibited by Muslims.

Dr. Sa’d Al-Shathri replied to a question about video games being allowed or not:

“Islam does not forbid leisure or having fun in permissible ways. The basic rule concerning these games is that they are permissible so long as they do not get in the way of obligatory duties such as establishing prayer”

[source]

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How Can Video Gaming Be Harmful?

Video games are becoming the norm, and our children begin playing them at an early age. The brain of a child tracks and saves all the information it receives in order to further define that child’s character as he or she grows older.

Some video games are toxic and can have negative effects on the young brain. Let’s take an example of a video game that has nudity. Islam prohibits nudity and that video game will be haram for all ages. Apart from that if a kid grows up playing a game that has nudity then it’s likely that the gamer will be addicted to it when he or she grows up as well.

Now let’s talk about a video game that indulges in violence for example shooting games. It incites violence in the kid’s brain from a very young age and he or she might get okay with killing people when they grow up. We have been seeing many attacks of violence from people nowadays and it seems like a norm.

Apart from the mental harm video games can also cause physical damage. Too much screen time can damage eyesight without a doubt but other risks are also there. There is a probability one develops heart disease due to extensive amounts of sitting idle.

There is one more reason why a video game might be considered haram in Islam and those video games contains betting or are cards game plus some video games involve lottery as well. All these games can get you involved in betting which is generally haram.

All in all, I would suggest if you or your kids are into video games you should always have a planned screen time and decide from the start depending on the violence and the nudity which video games will be allowed for kids.

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Which Video Games Are Prohibited In Islam?

Most video games are allowed apart from those which can harm a person long-term, so I’ve made a list of the types of video games that are prohibited in Islam.

• Video games that indulge in violence for example shooting and killing games.
• Video games include nudity which is haram in Islam.
• Games that include betting for example card games.
• Games that approve witchcraft and magic.
• Video games against Islam or the religion and promoting atheism.
• Games that depict a war between people.
• Video games with the real amount to be won.

These are some of the reasons that make video games haram but there can be others too. You need to figure this out as there are many games released throughout the year and some might go against the teachings of Islam.

Any video game except horse or camel riding and shooting arrows that involve a real amount of money will be considered haram as well as per the hadith:

Abu Huraira reported God’s Messenger as saying, “Wagers are allowed only for shooting arrows, or racing camels or horses.”

[Mishkat al-Masabih 3874]

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Final Thoughts

Most video games are considered halal unless they include any haram element. For example, if we look at FIFA it is totally halal to play a football video game. But FIFA also includes music which is haram in Islam. So FIFA will be halal for Muslims to play while they mute the music throughout the gaming.

A video game that includes nudity or violence or other haram elements is prohibited for Muslims.

These days when hundreds of games are released every year, we have to be observant and have to decide which ones aren’t for us. Some video games can be harmful at a young age for our kids and we need to protect them as well. Children are our responsibility so Muslims need to know all the info related to gaming out there. 

In simple words just make sure there is no violence, nudity, and nothing haram element going on in the video game and it’s not that addictive as well.

And Allah Knows Best.

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