Halal or Not? Pokemon Go

According to Islam Memo, earlier today Al-Azhar publicly spoke out against Pokemon Go, the augmented-reality smartphone game which has more daily users than Twitter. According to the site, the religious authority warned against the new game, saying it was causing people to act like drunks in the street.

 

Deputy chief Abbas Shouman said “(the game) negatively influences the mind and harms the player or others without being aware of that.”  He also claims the game leads Muslims to neglect their prayers and "go anywhere and everywhere, disgracing mosques, going inside them with their shoes, just to search for Pokemon."

 

The religious official praised modern technology but warned against people becoming too obsessed with it.