When we say a game has "gone gold," it means that the work on the game has finished, and a master copy has been sent out to the duplication plants to be pressed, packaged, and shipped out to consumers. This used to mean that the development team could take a break, but now going gold is likely to simply start a countdown to the inevitable day-one patch. Let's not be cynical, however, because today is a grand day: Duke Nukem Forever has gone gold.
"Duke Nukem Forever is the game that was once thought to be unshipppable, and yet here we are, on the precipice of history," said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. "Today marks an amazing day in the annals of gaming lore, the day where the legend of Duke Nukem Forever is finally complete and it takes that final step towards becoming a reality." Sure, it took us 15 years or so to get here, but the important thing is that the game is coming out. It's happening.
The game will be released on June 14, with a demo coming on June 3 for preorder customers and those who bought the Game of the Year Edition of Borderlands. Until then, why not read our April Fools Day "review" of the game? Check out our history of the game's engine updates, trailers, cancellation, and resurrection. Read our hands-on with the nearly final game to see what we think of Duke's modern incarnation.
When the game is finally out in stores, it's almost going to be sad. We're going to have to work for our jokes.
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