After The Game Awards announced its newest slate of nominees yesterday, Apple is getting in on the fun as it reveals the list of Apple App Store Award 2023 finalists. Categories for both general apps and games are included on the list, and some critically acclaimed names are among the nominees.
Three finalists in 10 categories were announced by Apple, with each category focused on specific devices or services. Most of the categories are split between general apps and games, though some like Apple TV or Apple Watch have a single category only.
Over a dozen games featured on the list of finalists, which included Poncle’s Vampire Survivors for iPhone Game of the Year, Sunblink Entertainment’s Hello Kitty: Island Adventure for Apple Arcade Game of the Year, and Young Horses’ Bugsnax for Apple TV App of the Year. Witch Beam’s Unpacking and HandyGames’s Endling: Extinction Is Forever are also among the 10 finalists for the Cultural Impact award, which recognizes games and apps that “fostered new ways to connect and celebrate the world’s diversity and wonder.”
The winners of the 2023 Apple App Store Awards will be announced “in the coming weeks,” according to Apple. The full list of categories and finalists is below.
iPhone App of the Year Finalists
- AllTrails
- Duolingo
- Flighty
iPhone Game of the Year Finalists
- Afterplace
- Honkai: Star Rail
- Vampire Survivors
iPad App of the Year Finalists
- Concepts
- DaVinci Resolve
- Prêt-à-Makeup
iPad Game of the Year Finalists
- Eggy Party
- Lost in Play
- Pocket City 2
Mac App of the Year Finalists
- Linearity Curve
- Photomator
- Portal
Mac Game of the Year Finalists
- ELEX II
- Lies of P
- Return to Monkey Island
Apple Watch App of the Year Finalists
- Planny
- SmartGym
- Tide Guide
Apple TV App of the Year Finalists
- Bugsnax
- FitOn
- MUBI
Apple Arcade Game of the Year Finalists
- Cityscapes
- Hello Kitty Island Adventure
- stitch.
Cultural Impact Finalists
- balance
- Copilot
- Endling: Extinction Is Forever
- Finding Hannah
- How to Say Goodbye
- Pok Pok
- Proloquo
- Rebel Girls
- Too Good To Go
- Unpacking
