Vin Diesel was at the turn of the century one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. After a few not so great movies and a run doing the kid movie bit things have gotten worse for the actor who was supposed to be Hitman’s agent 47 in the movie version. Now we have had the news through that his new vehicle (no pun intended) Wheelman: The Game will be delayed until next year.

The game version of his new movie is from Midway and is an open-world driving/action title that is due to be released on the PC, PS3 and 360 now early next year. This is not the first time the game has been delayed as it was originally supposed to be out back in 2007. The reason announced for the delay is to allow for more development time. After finding various reaction comments about how the title ran at E3 it does sound like the time is needed with framerate issues and frequent crashes on the current code.

In one of those really funny turns of events showing who’s boss Microsoft has stopped Halo makers Bungie from announcing a new Halo title at this months E3.

According to GameRush, Bungie had a full 60-second trailer ready to go and be shown at the Microsoft keynote address right at the end but was told at the last minute it’s not to be shown. Bungie revealing it’s new Halo title at E3 is one of the webs worst secrets, specially with the constant comments coming from various sources for the last month before the show.

The lack of new information however is a disappointment. Especially with the teasing of a trailer for the new title, but considering how Halo Wars had a trailer release and still is not around perhaps this is a blessing in disguise. Think of it this way, being desperate to see something is less likely to happen if you don’t know it exists. Even with the cool Halo Wars trailer the recent videos showing the game in action have hardly been incredible, looking like an extremely average PC RTS.

We will be sure to hear more about this soon, probably when Sony is just about to announce a new title and Microsoft needs an ace in the hole to distract from it. Much like Nvidia’s price drops during ATI card releases.

It’s one of the worst kept secrets in gaming after a few months ago a casting sheet came around. Portal: Still Alive has now been announced by Microsoft in their E3 press statements as coming to the 360 Arcade later this year. This seems to be somewhat accelerated against the prior statements made by Valve that they would not release any time soon more Portal as it would allow for greater anticipation from gamers as they count the days to the sequel.

Still Alive will hold the original game plus some more advanced challenges. Thats as much as we know for now. Without presenting a spoiler the name of the extended version can be greatly explinaed in The Orange Box soundtrack, of which the original version Portal is a part of. What this means for you? Giving more money to Valve for a great game. Let’s face it, that’s not unexpected.

Let’s face it E3 isn’t exactly what it used to be. The BB’s are no longer there
and everything is on a much smaller scale. There isn’t even any big announcements
anymore all we have are sequels to older titles and even those are ones leaked
before. So does E3 even matter anymore?

More to the point instead of reading endless news posts about possible announcements
and what “might” be announced within the next few days why not try something different
and take some time for yourself. While we might like them to be, games are not everything.

To assist in this we have compiled a few suggestions for things to watch at home, in a cinema and even play that you can do right now and just wait for the E3 results later. It’s much more fun to get the facts and not be let down by wrong “what if” posts online.

What to watch - Home

Big Stan (DVD)

The first recommendation might be a shock to some. Big Stan is the newest movie
starring/directed by Rob Schneider of Judge Dredd/Deuce Bigalow fame.
This one is yet another comedy but about a guy who ends up found guilty in a US
court for minor financial offenses. To avoid being a target in the slammer he gets
a shady lawyer to buy him 6 months to prepare and learn to fight before heading in.

In what comes down to great casting he hires The Master (David Carradine) a hobo
martial arts expert.  Plus there’s the odd one seeing the serious girl who plays
Cameron in Fox’s House (Jennifer Morrison) as the ditsy wife. It’s a laugh out loud comedy with some classic scenes. Even as a prison comedy it’s a great movie that can easily stand repeat viewings. The only problem is the rather obvious ending that anyone can see a mile away.

If in the States you can buy or rent it now, if in the UK it’s not out yet but will be
in August. A little late for E3 but still worth a look.

What to watch - Cinema

The Dark Knight

Not really a shocker I know but lets face it there is no bigger movie this year and none
with better reviews so far. Even though the full release date hasn’t come around yet
there are locations doing early screenings so why not take on Batman. Any sci-fi movie
where an Oscar is recommended by critics has to be something special.

If you want a taster before seeing it why not go and buy Batman Begins on blu-ray
where you get 5 minutes of The Dark Knight at full blu-ray quality to enjoy right at home.

What to play - Home (obviously!)

Team Fortress 2

Even though the game came out last year there have been several updates and additions to make it even more worthwhile to go back and try the game again if you have taken time off. Running around building defenses as an Engineer or emptying a clip as The Heavy in 18 seconds cannot be beaten, even by Crysis. If for some reason you have not tried TF2 or at least any other titles in Valves Orange Box just buy it over Steam and play for some great times and forget about E3.

When I heard Nintendo was holding its E3 conference in the Kodak Theatre, I was shocked. This was where they announced the Wii! They must have something big up their sleeves… Well they didn’t.

Watch the video for more of my thoughts: