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Fatwa CenterRuling on playing 'Pokemon'
Question
Assalamu alaykum. I am wondering about the video game called Pokemon. What is the scholars' opinion at Islamweb concerning the game? I know that versions of the game give certain creatures divine attributes, which is undoubtedly wrong, but what if the version of the game was free of that? The main issue I can think of is that the game has an element of evolution. I am not completely sure if the type of evolution exhibited in the game is unacceptable in the Shariah, since there is an acceptable understanding of evolution in Islam. And there is also the cartoon called “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, where animals exposed to a chemical mutate and become larger and gain humanistic abilities. An opinion is appreciated since these games and TV shows are so popular, especially amongst the youth. May Allah bless you.
Answer
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.
First of all, the view that we adopt here at Islamweb is that playing electronic games is permissible unless they involve violations of the Shariah; in which case it becomes forbidden to play them. These violations include the following: if the games include honoring the cross or the slogans of disbelief or contain music or pictures of naked women, and so on; we have already clarified this in fatwa 162101.
We did not see the game that you mentioned in the question, but the Standing Committee for Issuing Fataawa issued a fatwa prohibiting playing this game because it includes violations of the Shariah. The Fatwa of the Standing Committee reads:
“The questioners asked about the ruling on the game called Pokemon. The answer is: This game includes a number of violations of the Shariah, among which are the following: Shirk (polytheism) through the belief that there are many gods; gambling, which is forbidden by Allah by the text of the Quran, and Allah resembled it to wine and stone altars, as Allah says (what means): {O you who have believed, indeed, intoxicants, gambling, [sacrificing on] stone altars [to other than Allah], and divining arrows are but defilement from the work of Satan, so avoid it that you may be successful. Satan only wants to cause between you animosity and hatred through intoxicants and gambling and to avert you from the remembrance of Allah and from prayer. So will you not desist?} [Quran 5:90-91]; and it includes promoting the slogans of disbelief and advertising for it, and promoting forbidden images, and consuming people’s money unlawfully. For these violations and others, the Standing Committee decrees that this game is forbidden and declares the money earned by playing this game to be unlawful, because it is gambling, and gambling is forbidden, and it is forbidden to sell this game or to buy it, because this is a means that leads to what Allah and His Messenger have prohibited. The Committee recommends that all Muslims should beware of it and prevent their children from playing it as a way of preserving their religion, creed, and morals.”
The Muslim should use his time in what benefits him in his religion and his worldly life. A person is responsible for his time, as in the hadeeth that reads, “The feet of a servant will not move on the Day of Judgment until he is questioned about his life, how he spent it... ” [At-Tirmithi - hasan saheeh (good or sound)]
For more benefit, please refer to fatwa 86533.
Allah knows best.
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