Each year, the Apple Design Awards celebrate the creative artistry and technical achievement of developers who reflect the best in design, innovation, and technology. We’re thrilled to announce the winners for 2022.

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

Marvel Future Revolution

What we love: Whether you’re opening interdimensional portals as Dr. Strange or zapping MODOK with Iron Man’s repulsor beams, Marvel Future Revolution looks like it was pulled straight out of a blockbuster film. Beautiful, cinematic cutscenes seamlessly transition to fluid combat sequences in an expansive world. And every hero looks the part, thanks to spot-on animations and over 400 million costume combinations per character. Excelsior!

Meet the creator: “We wanted to wow players from the get-go and to make the game as Marvel as possible,” says executive producer Doohyun Cho. “I think we were able to achieve the true superhero experience.”

Odio

What we love: When you need to block out the noise of the world and focus, unwind, or catch some z’s, few apps create as immersive an audio experience as Odio’s dynamic 3D soundscapes. Rushing waterfalls. Deep-space sounds. Synthy blips and washes. Mix and match each element (rendered in spatial audio) with the app’s futuristic but intuitive sliders—all while supporting the musicians and artists from around the world who created the audio and the accompanying abstract animations.

Meet the creator: “One of our inspirations is Brian Eno’s album Music for Airports,” says Rutger Schimmel of Volst. “Eno used sound loops of various lengths to create ambient music to induce calm and create space to think. This matched with our idea of what Odio should be.”

Winners in this category provide a great experience for all with their support of diverse backgrounds, abilities, and languages.

Procreate

What we love: Since its debut over a decade ago, this best-in-class drawing and painting app has been a go-to for artists of all levels. This year, it doubled down on features that make its true-to-life brushes, pens, and pencils accessible to all. Stroke Stabilization helps artists with tremors or motor impairments to draw smoother lines, while feedback sounds and color descriptions help visually impaired and color-blind creators leverage the app’s full power.

Meet the creator: “Procreate gives you all these ‘superpowers’ you can’t get with traditional media,” says cofounder James Cuda. “It challenges what art is. That’s the power of the digital medium.”

Wylde Flowers

What we love: In this charming Apple Arcade life simulation, there are crops to tend, livestock to raise, and neighbors to befriend. But you’re no ordinary farmer—you’re also a witch! Wylde Flowers’ town of Fairhaven is home to people of all ages, cultures, ethnicities, and identities—and that extends to the talented voice cast behind every character. The game’s themes of acceptance and support stretch far beyond its magical realm.

Meet the creator: “I hope everybody will find they’re accepted in Fairhaven, or perhaps see themselves in the other residents,” says Studio Drydock cofounder and creative director Amanda Schofield.

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

Lego Star Wars: Castaways

What we love: Battle a rancor. Pilot X-wings. Journey with friends through simulations of historic Star Wars locales like Mos Eisley and Hoth as you face a mysterious threat. The coolest part of this online action-adventure set in a certain faraway galaxy? Every level is built with actual Lego bricks—right down to the tiny logo and perfect plastic sheen. Whether you’re playing on iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV, Castaways’ smooth frame rate, meticulous art direction, and authentic Lego look make it an unforgettable experience.

Meet the creator: “The more complex the shape, the more polygons you have to draw,” says Gameloft creative director Jacques Durand. “For the Millennium Falcon, it was in the millions.”

Halide Mark II

What we love: Halide couples the power of a DSLR camera with a clutter-free interface you can control with one thumb. Intuitive gestures, modeled after the focus and exposure dials on an old-school camera—make pros feel at home while capturing gorgeous ML-enhanced RAW images. And with Halide II’s support for Siri Shortcuts and a dedicated Apple Watch app, snapping the shutter from afar is a breeze.

Meet the creator: “When we launched the app, I remember my mother saying, ‘There are a lot of camera apps out there,’” says Lux Optics cofounder Sebastiaan de With. “But we didn’t see an app that did exactly what we wanted, the way we wanted—letting you manually dial in photo settings the way you would with a film camera.”

Winners in this category provide memorable, engaging, and satisfying experiences that are enhanced by Apple technologies.

(Not Boring) Habits

What we love: This visually rich habit tracker helps you stick to a positive routine by turning it into an adventure: Journey across a barren forest, over a daunting chasm, and ultimately up a beautiful mountain as you gradually live a little better every day. And take a moment to give each 3D environment a spin—you never know what delightful sounds and haptics you’ll stumble across.

Meet the creator: “Even at their most utilitarian, your clothes—even your chairs!—express something,” says Andy Allen, cofounder of Andy Works. “Wouldn’t it be great if the software we live with did that too?”

Overboard!

What we love: It’s good to be bad in the thrilling visual novel Overboard!, because on this 1930s cruise ship you’re the villain. After shoving your husband off the boat, you have eight hours to concoct a plausible alibi. Evading suspicion takes attention to every detail—from the hour by hour whereabouts of other characters to the words you choose to speak—and failing is half the fun. Replay the day to see if you can frame a fellow passenger, woo the ship’s staff to your side, or even win a high-stakes card game. Countless endings make it truly replayable as you try to thread the needle and win the day.

Meet the creator: “The initial concept was inspired by a game of Cluedo I played with my young son,” says Jon Ingold, cofounder of Inkle Studios. “He was really shocked when we finished a game and it turned out his character was the murderer—he thought that meant he’d lost!

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

Rebel Girls

What we love: Rebel Girls inspires the next generation by amplifying the stories of the world’s most influential women: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, astronomer Hypatia of Alexandria, Olympian Simone Biles, Chinese American actor Anna May Wong, activist Malala Yousafzai, and many others. Spanning cultures, centuries, and disciplines, each subject comes to life through vivid 10- to 20-minute audio stories—all accompanied by gorgeous original art by female and nonbinary artists from around the world.

Meet the creator: “We talked to dozens of girls and their families throughout the creation of this app—from the first day of ideation through feature design,” says chief product officer Melissa Mazman. “In many ways, it was designed by the girls of our community.”

Gibbon: Beyond the Trees

What we love: Swing across the jungle—and beyond—as an endangered primate in this gorgeous Apple Arcade game. Witness humanity’s destructive force firsthand: Your habitat burned down to make room for palm oil farms, families torn apart by poaching, towns bustling where wildlife once thrived. Working closely with conservation organizations, Gibbon’s developers did more than just make a beautiful hand-drawn adventure—they created a game that encourages us to face environmental catastrophes head-on.

Meet the creator: “Our hope is that players feel empathy for not only gibbons but wildlife in general, and try to live in a way that enables wilderness and wildlife to thrive,” says Felix Bohatsch, game director and Broken Rules Interactive Media cofounder.

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

Slopes

What we love: An essential app for skiers and snowboarders, Slopes uses the GPS on iPhone or Apple Watch to automatically record mountains of helpful stats—your top speed, vertical feet descended, number of runs, and more. Detailed 3D trail maps and live-updated snow conditions help you make the most of each run. And we especially love how Slopes streamlines the sharing of stats for a little friendly competition.

Meet the creator: “Seeing your own progress is really inspiring,” says Breakpoint Studio’s Curtis Herbert. “For us, hearing how Slopes brings people together at the end of the day, sitting around the fire comparing stats, is the best.”

A Musical Story

What we love: Your first order of business in the memorable A Musical Story is to tap along to the rhythm of a life-support machine—a poignant moment that’s just the start of this richly animated ’70s adventure. Coupled with a gorgeous soundtrack and nuanced narrative about an artist’s musical memories, this novel take on rhythm gaming hits all the right notes.

Meet the creator: “Most music games are based on a visual experience, not an auditory one,” says Charles Bardin, the game’s designer and co-composer. “A Musical Story relies heavily on your listening skills. It’s a new way to connect the player to their senses.”