Question:
There is a new game on the Internet which IMO is very questionable as it seems to be based on Islamic culture and history but it actually has a very strange name (THE 99) and very controversial names of characters. It is basically about a legend that the Mongols when they sacked Baghdad, they razed the largest library in the city and threw the books into the Tigris River, which ran black with ink. But the caliphate guardians, in a desperate attempt to save the vast knowledge of the library before it was destroyed, concocted an alchemical solution that would absorb the contents of the books. They instilled this information into ninety-nine gemstones, which supposedly contain the lost knowledge of the Library of Baghdad. Under great duress, they smuggled the Noor Stones out of Baghdad, taking them to Andalusia, where they were used as the centerpiece for a great, hidden, Fortress of Knowledge.Then the fortress was distroyed and the gemstones were removed from it, scattered to the four corners of the world. Dr. Ramzi Razem, the leader and mentor of the game, believes the legend, including the idea that the stones activate superpowers within certain people. He directs the quest to find the lost Noor Stones of Baghdad and although possessing no superpowers of his own, he helps other characters to use theirs. The team features 99 characters from 99 different countries and each character's powers reflect one of the traditional 99 attributes of Allah. These characters find themselves transformed from ordinary human beings into superpowered heroes. Some of these characters have Names of Allah (Subhanhu wa Taala) like Noora, Jabbar, Mumita, Jami, Fatah, Darr, Raqib, Hadya, Bari, Baeth etc. Please let me know the ruling on this game to let its authors know that it is Haram and to warn people against it if it is so.
Fatwa:
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His Slave and Messenger.
After seeing the game which you mentioned in the question and browsing through its site, and after reading some of what is mentioned about it in the site itself, it became clear to us that it is not permissible to play this game because it contains disbelief, false beliefs, and humiliation to the Names and Attributes of Allah. In this game we find each member of the 99 group impersonating one of the Names of Allah and claiming that he/she acts according to the implication of that Name, or reflects it. We also find naming the males and females in that group with those noble Names. These matters are undoubtedly clear carelessness and mockery of the noble Names of Allah. Moreover, resembling Allah to his creation is clear disbelief in Allah and it is practicing deviation concerning His Names and Attributes; Allah Says (what means): {And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allah, so call on Him by them, and leave [the company of] those who practice deviation concerning His names. They will be recompensed for what they have been doing.}[Quran 7:180]
Indeed, there is no greater recklessness and mockery than naming a disabled person with the Name Daar (reflecting the name of Allah Ad-Daar; The One Who causes harm) and naming a female who is dressed immorally with the name of Noora (reflecting the name of Allah An-Noor; The Light), and naming a fourth person with a silly and absurd appearance with the name Jabbar (reflecting the name of Allah Al-Jabbar; The Almighty).
Similarly, claiming that the stones which they named ‘Noor stones’ (i.e. the stones of light) activate superpowers within certain people is shirk (associating partners with Allah) and it is a clear misguidance. This is so because stones neither benefit nor harm, and they can neither grant nor deprive people from anything.
This game inculcates wrong beliefs in the minds and hearts of the children, and it degrades the Names and Attributes of Allah, and therefore, the owners of this site and those who run it should repent to Allah, withdraw it from the market and must avoid being the reason behind spoiling people’s creed. They should have asked the scholars about this game before designing and publishing it. We ask Allah to guide them and set right their affairs.
Allah Knows best.
Fatwa answered by: The Fatwa Center at Islamweb