While it doesn't mean much in the age of live service games and first day patches, "going gold" is still a fun little milestone, and today Blizzard announced that Diablo 4 (opens in new tab) has officially crossed that line.

"Going Gold is a landmark milestone for the amazing Diablo 4 team who have been working hard on the next generation version of this iconic franchise. It's a concrete and meaningful step toward our June 6 launch."

"Whether you're a franchise veteran or jumping in for the first time, we can't wait for you to experience the full game. Engage in great storytelling, experiment with character classes and builds, and explore what the endgame and the dark world of Sanctuary have to offer.

"Gone gold" is a reference to the good old days of physical media, and basically means that the developers have locked down a release version of the game: it's complete, bug-free, and all that's left is to box it up and ship it to stores. Finito

Things are different in the world of live services, where game development never really ends. However, the developer must promise to "ship" the game at some point. That's why there are "going gold" announcements like this one: what's done is done, and cannot be undone.

But the point is, as Ferguson implied, let's stop worrying about last-minute delays caused by unexpected quirks discovered during open beta testing: Diablo 4 will be 100% available on June 6. If you've played the beta, here's a quick recap of the changes you can expect in the full release (opens in a new tab).