Every year, the Apple Design Awards recognize innovation, ingenuity, and technical achievement in app and game design. But they’ve also become something more: a moment to step back and celebrate the work of Apple developers across the community. We’re thrilled to announce this year’s finalists.

Apple Design Award winners will be shared in the coming weeks.

Some titles may not be available to download in your region or on all devices.

Finalists in this category provide memorable, engaging, and satisfying experiences enhanced by Apple technologies.

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Blippo+
Developer: Panic, Inc., United States

Aimed at a very specific demographic of channel-surfers, Blippo+ is a retro-futurist TV streaming multiple channels of bizarre, ad-free programs reminiscent of the highest numbers on the UHF dial. (Ask your elders.) And get this: Each “broadcast” in the app is synchronized, which means everyone watches the same irreverence together.

grug
Developer: Ocho, Netherlands

This playful app delivers daily wisdom in Neolithic grunts. Reading daily “grugs”—affirmations like “only walking grug find breakthrough...sitting grug find nothing”—is primal joy, and its scribbled design really pops. (Check out the hand-drawn status bar.)

Metaballs
Developer: Apposite, United States

This bubbly visionOS experience lets you create spatial blobs and bubbles, out of a variety of colorful materials, all of which can be pushed, poked, prodded, and pulled apart. Conjuring gelatinous shapes on a spatial canvas is a marvel, as is the way they react to shifts in lighting in your space.

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Ball x Pit
Developer: Kenny Sun Studios, United States

Bursting with frantic, ricochet-fueled combat, the RPG roguelite Ball x Pit turns a simple idea—fling superpowered balls at descending foes—into a wildly satisfying spin on a vintage arcade experience. The game also goes deep: Fuse balls together to discover potent new varieties, and manage a growing city to harvest resources.

Is This Seat Taken?
Developer: Poti Poti Studio, Spain

A tricky puzzler dressed up as a Saturday morning cartoon, Is This Seat Taken? hides its logic conundrums in a fun tale about the perils of sitting near others in buses, restaurants, and other familiar places. Tap objects in each scene for playful surprises—the interface hides its own Easter eggs too.

PowerWash Simulator
Developer: FuturLab Limited, United Kingdom

Scrub away every kind of muck in this super-satisfying Apple Arcade game—complete with haptic feedback specific to the type of hose nozzle you’ve armed yourself with. And just when you think you’re destined to clean up another filthy backyard, the story takes a hard turn into time travel, mysterious cat gatherings, and ancient temples.

Finalists in this category provide a great experience for all by reflecting a variety of backgrounds, abilities, and languages.

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Guitar Wiz
Developer: Bijoy Thangaraj, India

Use this all-in-one guitarist’s toolkit to learn, play along with, and discover different chord voicings. Robust VoiceOver integration provides spoken instructions on everything from which chords to strum in a song to how to finger a Gadd9. Guitar Wiz also supports Dynamic Type, Increase Contrast, and Differentiate Without Color.

Hearing Buddy
Developer: Scott Krager, United States

Created by a solo developer with hearing loss, Hearing Buddy is shaped by experience. The thoughtful app uses the Foundation Models framework and on-device speech-to-text features to quickly generate real-time captions and summaries of spoken conversations.

Structured
Developer: unorderly GmbH, Germany

Visually sharp and easy to scan, this daily planner helps you optimize open slots on your calendar—and find time to take breaks. Members of the neurodivergent community have praised Structured for its simple layout and the way it incorporates the Foundation Models framework to suggest and pre-fill tasks.

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Civilization VII
Developer: Firaxis Games, United States

The latest installment in the legendary strategy series prizes cultural representation, portraying leaders and civilizations from across history (including those rarely spotlighted in mainstream games, like human rights pioneer Harriet Tubman and Indian rebel Lakshmibai). The result is a more expansive—and more respectful—look at human history.

Pine Hearts
Developer: Hyper Luminal Games Limited, United Kingdom

No good deed goes unrewarded in the wholesome world of Pine Hearts. In this surprisingly moving game, protagonist Tyke returns to a nature preserve to remember his late father—and progresses on his journey by lending a hand to other park visitors. The game communicates its inclusivity options before play begins: Enhance text legibility, customize controls, and adjust both motion and sensory feedback.

Sago Mini Jinja’s Garden
Developer: Sago Mini, Canada

Sago Mini has shown great care in crafting an accessible world where kids can play soccer, chase a mouse for cheese, or try on a party hat. With interactions that require no reading, this playground integrates inclusivity features so organically that players and caregivers may not even notice them.

Finalists in this category provide a state-of-the-art experience through a novel use of Apple technologies that sets them apart in their genre.

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D-Day: The Camera Soldier
Developer: Targo, France

This immersive app tells the story of a D-Day combat camera operator through the eyes of his daughter, who knew little of her father’s experiences until an unexpected message led her on a journey to recover his work. Through a breathtaking mix of immersive video, Spatial Audio, and interactive activities, D-Day: The Camera Soldier is a powerful window into history and a moving narrative about the bonds of family.

Detail
Developer: Detail Technologies B.V., Netherlands

Detail combines the simplicity of a camera app with the power of an AI video editor. It helps anyone create podcast videos and direct-to-camera takes by identifying magic moments, removing silence, and auto-editing a single shot from multiple angles.

NBA
Developer: NBA Media Ventures, LLC, United States

As if being able to watch five NBA games at once on Apple Vision Pro wasn’t revolutionary enough, this year a partnership with Spectrum added select Los Angeles Lakers games to the app in Apple Immersive Video with Spatial Audio. Watch the action from behind each team’s basket, between the benches, or high up in the arena.

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Blue Prince
Developer: Dogubomb, United States

This genre-defying adventure mixes exploration, puzzle-solving, and narrative elements into something wholly new. Your task: Locate a secret room inside a sprawling mansion. The twist: You create the house from scratch, building each room as you go. The story unfolds everywhere, from pictures hanging on walls to hand-scribbled notes.

Pickle Pro
Developer: Resolution Games AB, Sweden

Pickle Pro is among the most impressive native gaming experiences for visionOS—and also happens to be a very fun pickleball game. Every swing feels natural and precise, and thanks to integration with SharePlay personas, players can challenge friends to online matches.

TR-49
Developer: inkle, United Kingdom

This gripping puzzler asks the question: What if code-cracking computers built during World War II had been left running? Developed by inkle (the team behind 2022 Apple Design Award winner Overboard!), TR-49 delivers a great hook, a distinctive nonlinear narrative, and a delightful array of vintage puzzles.

Finalists in this category deliver intuitive interfaces and effortless controls that are perfectly tailored to their platform.

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Moonlitt
Developer: Flipping Hues Srls, Italy

If the Artemis mission piqued your interest in all things lunar, Moonlitt can keep it going. Like its sister app (and 2024 Apple Design Award finalist) Sunlitt, this app brings a simple elegance to minding the moon’s phases, its trajectory, and much more. It’s an intuitive and beautiful way to keep your eyes on the skies.

The Outsiders
Developer: Gentler Stories, LLC, Slovenia

From the developers of Gentler Streak comes this equally thoughtful fitness app. The Outsiders distinguishes itself with its Training Readiness Score, a beautiful data visualization that shows training load alongside your sleep quality, resting heart rate, and other metrics.

Tide Guide
Developer: Condor Digital, United States

This tide tracker’s custom animations and polished presentation of nautical data all tie nicely into the app’s aquatic theme. Powerful widgets help swimmers and boat captains alike save a step right from the Home Screen.

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Grand Mountain Adventure 2
Developer: Toppluva AB, Sweden

Grand Mountain Adventure 2 is a great example of designing for touch controls; the gestures are smooth, quick to pick up, and immediately responsive. It looks beautiful too, whisking you into a hyper-detailed winter wonderland of ski resorts, forests, and backcountry routes.

Sago Mini Jinja’s Garden
Developer: Sago Mini, Canada

Sago Mini Jinja’s Garden is a masterclass in intuitive interaction—perfect for a game geared toward kids ages 3–6. With interactions that require no reading and effortless swipe-to-move controls, this joyful garden lets kids plant seeds, cook meals, and harvest vegetables with minimal guidance.

TR-49
Developer: inkle, United Kingdom

In addition to its Innovation nomination, TR-49 scores an Interaction nod for impressive audio design that helps establish its time-specific world. While sifting through an ancient machine for clues, players stumble upon all sorts of cool audio files—and a narrator’s voice reacts to every discovery.

Finalists in this category improve lives in a meaningful way and shine a light on crucial issues.

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Harvee
Developer: Peak Labs Ltd., United Kingdom

Harvee translates Apple Watch data—heart rate variability, resting heart rate, sleep stats, and activity levels—into actionable guidance for recovery. Because the recommendations are powered by on-device foundation models, sensitive health data stays secure.

Katha Room
Developer: Parjanya Creative Solutions, India

A bedtime story app from India with rich art and a commitment to cultural representation, Katha Room shares stories drawn from Indian folklore. It decorates them with visuals inspired by the Gond art form, whose intricate patterns and vibrant colors bring warmth to every screen.

Primary
Developer: Wood Metal Rocks LLC, United States

Primary was founded by a former Associated Press journalist and is powered by experienced editors and contributors all over the globe. The app shines the spatial spotlight on breaking news and crucial issues without resorting to sensationalism or clickbait.

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Consume Me
Developer: Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, United States

At its core, Consume Me is about the emotional realities of eating disorders, and it treats the subject matter with great care. This deeply personal, autobiographical life sim deftly and playfully addresses mental health, body image, and self-worth—all through simple mini-games about everyday tasks, like exercising and applying makeup.

Coming soon to the App Store.

despelote
Developer: Julián Cordero, Sebastián Valbuena, Ecuador

Set in 2001, as Ecuador is on the verge of qualifying for its first World Cup, despelote unfolds through the eyes of 8-year-old Julián, whose decisions, movements, and occasional eavesdropping drive a tale of how sports can unite a culture. The blended visual style—line-drawn characters juxtaposed against lo-fi duotone street photography—makes for an evocative take on the feeling of childhood.

Spilled!
Developer: Lente Cuenen, Netherlands

This cozy cleanup game about restoring polluted waterways was created by Lente Cuenen, a solo developer who lives on a houseboat and is passionate about ecological causes. Her values inform every frame of this game, in which you restore oil-slicked waters to a crystal-clear blue while rescuing adorable pixel-art critters along the way.

Finalists in this category feature stunning imagery, skillfully drawn interfaces, and high-quality animations with a distinctive and cohesive theme.

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(Not Boring) Camera
Developer: Not Boring Software LLC, United States

This tactile throwback to the cameras of the ’70s and ’80s is all giant buttons and haptic scroll wheels that make it fun to dial in focal points and precision settings. Super accessible for beginners, the app also supports SuperRAW and professional-grade filters for serious photographers.

Caradise
Developer: PSQV AB, Sweden

This astonishingly immersive auto museum has everything but the new-car smell. Open doors, explore interiors, and hear engines roar to life in wondrous Spatial Audio. Most impressive, all these details—down to the reflection of ambient light on a car hood—are the work of solo developer Peder Sandqvist.

Tide Guide
Developer: Condor Digital, United States

Tide Guide’s rich full-screen charts present a boatload of weather data—hour-by-hour forecasts, water temperature, swell height—in a crisp, clear way that’s understandable to even the most landlocked. Fun fact: The app’s palette changes to match the color of the sky throughout the day.

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Arknights: Endfield
Developer: Hypergryph, China, Singapore

With incredible art direction, 3D combat, and massive environments, this inventive RPG pushes what’s possible on iPhone and iPad. The mix of squad-based action and factory construction provides endless fun for both strategy fans and amateur architects.

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition
Developer: CD Projekt, Poland

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition delivers a breathtakingly detailed dystopian world—one whose intricate interiors, distinctive sci-fi vehicle designs, and wild character art make the experience feel glamorous, gritty, and lived-in. The“For This Mac” setting automatically optimizes frame rate and visual fidelity for each device.

SILT
Developer: Spiral Circus, United Kingdom

A haunting monochrome art style powers this unique indie game, which thrusts players into a strange and sinister underwater world. Don’t miss the impressive camera work, which zooms in to track you through tight tunnels, then zooms out to show the scale of a colossal eel boss monster.