Injustice Gods Among Us Leads April Sales In U.S.

Total retail videogame sales were down 25% year-over-year in the U.S. in April, the NPD Group reports. Meanwhile, retail software sales were down 17%.

The best-selling game for the month was Injustice: Gods Among Us, marking the first time since 2011’s Mortal Kombat that a fighting game has ranked in the NPD top-spot. Injustice, along with games like Dead Island: Riptide, and Lego City Undercover: The Chase Begins drove software sales in April. Games that launched during the month saw an increase of 118% in unit sales and 130% in dollar sales compared to April 2012.

The overall 17% decline to software came from the weak performance of games that were launched prior to March, the NPD Group’s Liam Callahan says.

The top-10 best-selling games for the month of April (at retail) were as follows:

RankTitleSystemPublisher01.Injustice: Gods Among Us360, PS3, Wii UWarner Bros.02.Dead Island: Riptide360, PS3, PCDeep Silver03.Bioshock Infinite360, PS3, PCTake 204.Call of Duty: Black Ops 2360, PS3, PC, Wii UActivision Blizzard05.Defiance360, PS3, PCTrion Worlds06.Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon3DSNintendo07.NBA 2K13360, PS3, Wii, Wii U, PSP, PCTake 208.Skylanders GiantsWii, 360, PS3, 3DS, Wii UActivision Blizzard09.LEGO City Undercover: The Chase Begins3DSNintendo10.MLB 13: The ShowPS3, PSVSony

Reporting period: April 7th – May 5th, 2013.

Meanwhile, on the hardware front, the Xbox 360 was the best-selling console for the month once more. The system sold 130,000 units during April.

Read more stories about Bioshock: Infinite & Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 & Injustice: Gods Among Us & NPD & Xbox 360 on Siliconera.

The Binding of Isaac Rebirth Remake Coming To PC, PS4, Vita

Indie rogue-like The Binding of Isaac is coming to PC, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in 2014 as an updated version of the original game, titled The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth.

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is a remake of the original with expanded gameplay, more playable characters, story, enemies and items. The game will feature overhauled graphics in a new 16-bit style as well, and will be published by Nicalis.

Here’s a rundown of the features in The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth:

Local co-op multiplayerCompetitive loadouts“50-percent” new contentSteam discount for those that own the original gameNew playable charactersSeveral new challenge runs

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth will be available in 2014, but Nicalis haven't announced a date beyond that.

Read more stories about PC & PlayStation 4 & PlayStation Vita & The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth & Videos on Siliconera.

The Cast Of Sengoku Basara 4 Are Up To Their Usual Tricks

Capcom has announced a release date of January 23 2014 for the Sengoku Basara 4, and to celebrate, they released a new trailer letting the game's characters get some screen time, showing off their allegiances or plans.

From Takeda Shingen to Date Masamune and every faction’s various retainers and allies in between, it's a video full of manly cutaways, proclamations and moments full of the kind of angst and yelling that Sengoku Basara fans love.

Read more stories about PlayStation 3 & Sengoku Basara 4 & Videos on Siliconera.

Earn Poké Miles In Pokémon X And Pokémon Y For In-Game Rewards

In Pokémon X and Pokémon Y, you can earn “Poké Miles” within certain parts of the game, reports Serebii.net. Poké Miles are used in the PokéMileage Club to play attractions and receive items at the Pokémon Global Link website.

These items can then be sent back to the two Nintendo 3DS games; however, there is another way to earn these items as well. Dream Points in the Pokémon Global Link can be converted to Poké Miles as well, and the amount you get varies, depending on which of the  Pokémon RPGs you own.

More details can be found over at Serebii.net. Something else to note is that the Pokémon Global Link for the Gen 5 games (Black/White, Black 2/White 2) will be closing soon, with January 14th, 2014 set as the closing date.

Read more stories about Nintendo 3DS & Pokemon X & Pokemon Y on Siliconera.

Namco Bandai's PS3 Teaser Site Is Probably For A Saint Seiya Fighting Game

Update: Sources have confirmed that the game's title is Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers, not 'Bout Senses'.

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Namco Bandai will reveal a new PlayStation 3 game in two days and it's probably for a Saint Seiya fighting game. Jump revealed Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers, which has characters from the Zodiac Knights, Elysion Chapter, and Saint Seiya Omega in it. The magazine confirmed Kouga, Seiya, Shiryu, Kanon, Tenma, and Rhadamanthys will be in Saint Seiya: Bout Senses.

Back to the teaser site: did you notice the URL?

It's bandaigames.channel.or.jp/list/sbs/. Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers, perhaps?

Saint Seiya: Brave Soldiers is slated for release this Fall on the PlayStation 3 in Japan.

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Read more stories about PlayStation 3 & Saint Seiya: Bout Senses on Siliconera.

Lightning Returns Final Fantasy XIII Won't Let You Use MP To Heal

In past Final Fantasy titles, the Cure spell has always been a magic or ability that recovers health in exchange for a short amount of MP. In Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Cure and other spells will be a little different than before.

“In this game, Cure isn’t a regular ability, but a part of the GP effects. It will require the use of GP in order to heal yourself,” design director Yuji Abe tells Dengeki Online.

As previously detailed, GP in Lightning Returns stands for “Glory Points”. Abe describes GP as “convenience points,” which allow you to do various things like teleporting to specific areas on the field or stopping time in the game. And now, it’s also used to heal yourself when you’re hurting.

“It will also include Raise, which is used whenever you get knocked out,” Abe continues. “So, this time around, in order to heal yourself, you’ll either have to use GP or items such as potions. There will be different situations where you might have to consider saving your GP for stopping time instead of healing.”

“You’ll gain GP at the end of battles, so to a degree, you’ll be able to go around fighting to recover your health. Stronger enemies will give you more GP, so it might be a good idea to take on a stronger enemy to cast a Curaga when your HP is looking low. Command-based battle systems allow you to use them as much as you’d like, but this time it may feel a little more restricted.”

In Lightning Returns, the general flow of the game will start your day out in the ark where Hope is located. By 6 a.m. you’ll be forced back to the ark, where you’ll get to give your accumulated Radiant Points to the Tree of Life, in order to prolong the planet’s life span. The Radiant Points can be acquired by completing quests. Some quests will give you more and others, less. You’ll be able to expand the planet’s life through the tree by up to 13 days at a time.

Finally, Abe concludes with the following message for fans regarding the final adjustment stage of the game’s development:

“This time around, weapons and equipment will be a crucial element, so we are currently adjusting their parameters and values. We’re thinking about topics such as how to make players purchase and change (weapons and equipment) more frequently, and about the balance of abilities, which we’re constantly adjusting. We’ve been going back and forth in order to not have things appear too boring or too flashy. We’re doing our best to adjust it so it can correspond to various play styles, so please look forward to it.”

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will be available in North America on February 11th, 2014, and in Europe on February 14th, 2014.

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Read more stories about Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII & PlayStation 3 & Xbox 360 on Siliconera.

Monster Hunter 4 Will Have Nintendo-Themed Guild Cards, Too

Not content with putting Link, Mario and Luigi in the game, Nintendo and Capcom are also including the option of obtaining special guild cards in Monster Hunter 4 ,that are collaborations between the two companies.

Noted on Twitter after Nintendo Direct’s reveal on the additional outfits, the guild cards will feature such backgrounds as Super Mario Bro’s, Donkey Kong and The Legend of Zelda.

These guild cards will also allow players to pose Monster Hunter 4 characters, such as the picture above.

 

More details, said Nintendo, will be released by Capcom on how to obtain these cards. Monster Hunter 4 comes out September 14 for the Nintendo 3DS.

Read more stories about Monster Hunter 4 & Nintendo 3DS on Siliconera.