Dark Souls 3 was YouTube’s most popular game in April

They say YouTube is the best barometer for the games industry, and if that’s the case then the sun is most definitely currently shining on Bandai Namco’s Dark Souls 3.

The action RPG was named as the network’s top trending game of April 2016. This is based both on views and the amount of content created.

Microsoft’s Quantum Break came second, followed by indie hit Enter the Gungeon, baseball title MLB The Show 16 and PS4 platformer Ratchet & Clank.

Four games in the monthly Top 10 aren’t even released yet – Gears of War 4 (6th), Doom (7th), Overwatch (8th) and Mirror’s Edge: Catalyst (10th), all of which had playable betas on the go throughout the month.

While betas are supposed to exist to help developers balance games and find bugs before release, this shows how they’ve also become effective marketing tools,” YouTube noted. Even if everyone isn’t playing the beta, they’re still watching those that are via sites like YouTube and Twitch.”

Note, too, the ninth place entry for The Sims 2, the popularity of which was entirely driven by a string of videos made by YouTube personality The Diamond Minecart.