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Are you worried that you won't get enough video games during the Super Bowl weekend? Is the Super Bowl not enough of a "game" for you?

Don't worry, because you're in luck! Starting at 7:00 pm PST this Friday, game developers Teddy Dief (Hyper Light Drifter) and Adriel Wallick (Train Jam) are hosting the second Square Bowl – a 48-hour event to benefit the Able Gamers charity.

Last year they did Final Fantasy VII, and they are following up with Final Fantasy VIII. The two indie game developers will be joined throughout their 48-hour playthrough by other game developers.

From the looks of it, watching the stream will be free, but there will be a donate button under the video and chat. You can find the stream in the following link.

http://squarebowl.tv/

The AbleGamers Foundation is a charitable organization "that aims to improve the overall quality of life for those with disabilities through the power of video games." They do this by outreach to gamers with disabilities, "consultation for AAA and indie developers, free of charge, to assist in making each game as accessible as possible," and by providing grants for "assistive technology" in order to give gamers with disabilities access to technology and equipment to make their playing easier.

Now, what will it be like? Fun? Informative? ... (Boring?) I'm not sure. I was unaware of the first Square Bowl, so I can't tell you what this one will be like. But it's for a good cause, so tune in.

You can find more information on Teddy Dief and Adriel Wallick from the same website where you can reach the stream above.

Source: Game Informer, The AbleGamers, Square Bowl

For those of us waiting for a FFV and FFVI DS remake, it appears that we might have to wait for some time. Long time Square Enix producer Shinji Hashimoto, executive producer of almost all Final Fantasy remakes and ports, stated on Twitter that due to "technical issues" Square is undecided at the moment on whether or not to go ahead with them.

The response was an answer to numerous fan questions regarding the release of certain Square video games. Hashimoto's reply to all of them was that they were "at present undecided," and that Final Fantasy V and VI in particular had technical difficulties.

Now, as to what technical difficulties, I can't be certain because the details are vague. It does seem very likely that we will have to wait quite some time for these already long-awaited ports.

Source: AndriaSang Gaming News from Japan

As of this Monday, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) agreed to hear a case related to video games arising in California. Instead of sending the law back to the 9th Circuit Court of California (which struck down the video game law), SCOTUS will review the decision some time after their next session begins October 4.

The law, authored by California State Senator Leland Yee, made it illegal to rent or sell violent video games to minors with a $1,000 penalty against the retailers. The video game violence bill was passed through the Californian legislature in 2005, and since then has passed through the U.S. District Court and the 9th Circuit Court. Each court has struck down the law, arguing that the legislation violated the First Amendment, citing video games as protected speech, just as movies and music have been. The lower courts have also denied certain studies relating video games to violence, stating that as of the moment no studies conclusively find that video games directly cause violence.

The name of the case will be as follows:

SCHWARZENEGGER, GOV. OF CA V. ENTERTAINMENT MERCHANTS, ET AL.

Now, despite the comedic irony that the Terminator is sponsoring anti-video game legislation, this is a serious case. The question will be whether the Supreme Court will grant the same protections to video games as they and the lower courts have music and movies. And this is very likely to ignite a debate about video games and violence again.

Source: GamePolitics, SupremeCourt.gov