Dark Souls 3 Tops Best Selling Games List for April 2016

Game Rant

By GR Staff

Published May 13, 2016

From Software’s intimidating action RPG Dark Souls 3 proves to be just as formidable in the charts, taking the top spot for sales in April 2016 against some stiff opposition.

Dark Souls III developer From Software will have already known that it was on to a winner with the notorious hack’n’slash title. The game proved to be a darling of the critics, earning strong reviews across the board, and has been the talk of the gaming community, earning a place in YouTube’s top ten trending games of April 2016. Now, another milestone has been reached for the game, as it has taken the number one spot for April sales.

According to sales figures released by the NPD Group, Dark Souls III is officially the best-selling game in North America for the month of April 2016. The title was up against some strong opposition in the form of the Ratchet & Clank reboot and MLB 16: The Show, but From Software has come out on top.

A number of high-profile games released over the course of April, and some are very much present in NPD’s list. Xbox One exclusive Quantum Break rolled in at number seven on the list, while Nintendo's Star Fox: Zero rounded out the top ten overall. Perhaps the biggest surprise on the list, however, is Ratchet & Clank, which beat all but Dark Souls III despite being console exclusive to the PS4.

The NPD Group also revealed further information about gaming as a whole. As it turns out, sales of both software and hardware were down in comparison to last year, and NPD analyst Liam Callahan suggests that this is primarily down to a less enticing list of new releases. In particular, Mortal Kombat X's launch in 2015 seems to have trumped all comers one year later, with the beat 'em up's April 2015 sales beating all 2016 rivals by 18 percent.

From Software and publisher Bandai Namco will have had a good idea about exactly how well Dark Souls III was performing. After all, Bandai Namco had already confirmed that it had shipped an impressive 3 million copies worldwide. Nonetheless, earning first place overall in North America in undoubtedly an impressive feat.

In spite of the huge number of players that Dark Souls III has, a surprising number had yet to make any real progression in the game. In fact, From Software has revealed that one in ten players has yet to make it to the game's first bonfire. Thankfully, many more have got a strong hold on the title's mechanics, with some players even working out how to stack buffs to take down hard-as-nails Dark Souls III bosses in one hit.

Here is the full top ten rundown of best-selling games for April: