Apple has revealed the best apps and games of 2019, along with the most powerful trends that drove the app culture. While the Mario Kart Tour was launched relatively late in the year, it emerged as the biggest game on the iPhone in 2019. Other hits include ‘Dr. Mario World’ (Nintendo), ‘Minecraft Earth’ (Mojang), ‘Pokémon Masters’ (DeNA Co), ‘Assassin’s Creed Rebellion’ (Ubisoft), ‘Gears POP!’ (Microsoft Corporation), ‘The Elder Scrolls: Blades’ (Bethesda), Alien: Blackout (D3PA), and ‘Call of Duty: Mobile’ (Activision Publishing).
iPhone App of the Year: Spectre Camera (Lux Optics)
This AI-powered app leverages a dizzying amount of tech to let anyone take stunning long-exposure photos.
Draw and sketch in this elegant digital notebook app, whose graphite pencils, chisel-tipped markers, and more have been meticulously tuned to mimic the real thing.
With its elegant user experience and remarkably reasonable price point, Affinity Publisher makes pro-level design accessible to everyone, whether you’re creating a photo-rich coffee table book or a flyer for your second grader’s play.
This groundbreaking app was designed to support the community of explorers, scientists, and artists working towards a common goal: to create a comprehensive 'visual inventory' of the natural world through photo and video.
In 2019, a groundswell of apps helped us fill the proverbial blank page with our memories, dreams, images, and voices and did so with more power and personality than ever. With apps like Anchor (Anchor FM), Canva: Stories & Video Maker (Canva), Unfold (Unfold Creative), Steller (Expedition Travel Advisor), Spark Camera (Dayworks), Over (Over, Inc), and Wattpad (Wattpad Corp) anyone can express themselves through moving podcasts, one-of-a-kind novels, and true-to-life photo collages in an easier way than ever before.
Fly across sweeping landscapes to help celestial beings find their way back to the heavens in this groundbreaking social quest.
A dazzling, action-packed reimagining of classic 16-bit adventure games, 'Hyper Light Drifter' blends dreamlike exploration with fight-for-your-life survival.
This spectacularly satisfying puzzle-platformer is a soul-stirring work of digital art – one that explores hope, grief, and the triumph of piecing life back together after a tragic loss.
Developed by Lizardcube in cooperation with the series creator Ryuichi Nishizawa, 'Wonder Boy' – a beloved game from the ’80s, in which a half-lizard adventurer sets off on the challenge of a lifetime – gets a reboot with hand-drawn animation and a re-orchestrated soundtrack.
In 2019, Apple expanded the App Store with the introduction of Apple Arcade, a new game subscription service without ads or in-app purchases.
‘Sayonara Wild Hearts,’ developed by Simogo and published by Annapurna Interactive, is a hopeful, gorgeous and unique game – the kind that gets your adrenaline pumping and makes your spirit soar. Prepare to race motorcycles, wield swords, and break hearts at 200mph.
The App Store drives the app economy and has earned $120 billion for developers worldwide. Today, the App Store is the world’s safest and most vibrant app marketplace, with over half a billion people visiting each week, the company said in a blog post.
