Apple Design Awards 2014

https://developer.apple.com/design/awards/

by shutton • 12 years ago

76 41 12 years ago

developer.apple.com

shutton• 12 years ago

Looking at the winners there doesn't seem to be anything massively inspiring and only one dedicated OSX app.

I'm not sure how much of a big deal these awards are.

nicholassmith• 12 years ago

They're a reasonably big deal, a lot of the developer community look to see who wins and if there's an emerging pattern that links the winners.

emsy• 12 years ago

I agree, they are kind of like the obvious choices. But then again, you can only innovate in the boundaries of the App Store approval.

coldtea• 12 years ago

Yeah, but they are quite large boundaries, given that it has over 1 millions apps in all kinds of genres and ideas.

If you can't innovate within those boundaries then you might be Frank Zappa or The Residents but you're not Jimi Hendrix or The Beatles. That is, you might be too wild for your own good.

eddieroger• 12 years ago

They're a big deal for a few reasons, such as they set the norm for what the next year's apps will try to mimic, but I agree that it's a bummer to see so few OS X apps (well, app). Hopefully Yosemite will inspire people to get back to writing award-eligible OS X apps.

oneeyedpigeon• 12 years ago

Nice to see an appearance for Threes - the developers deserve a bit of recognition after 2048 went crazy, and Threes is a really nice user experience.

k-mcgrady• 12 years ago

Monument Valley and Yahoo News Digest are both really nicely done. Definitely deserving of the award (not that the others aren't, I just haven't used most of them).

basicallydan2• 12 years ago

So happy about Threes. Such an underrated game. Almost addictive but not quite; slick, classy, fun, kinda cute game. Great work. Well done!

Glide• 12 years ago

Almost addictive? I disagree. I had to remove it to get anything done.

Tyrannosaurs• 12 years ago

It is, though it doesn't take long before you start to resent the time you're spending on it rather than enjoying it.

untog• 12 years ago

It is, but increasingly I've seen far, far more people playing 2048 than Threes. Which, IIRC, is a wrapped webapp.

Not that it's strictly relevant to the Apple Design Awards, but perhaps a reminder that it doesn't necessarily matter whether you win or not.

arrrg4• 12 years ago

2048 is free with ads. Of course more people are playing it.

This award (and all the others given out this year) was nevertheless a nice recovery from Apple (compared to last years’ winners which were pretty crappy), showing what they value and telling the world about it.

I hope they continue to show off these values in the editorial decisions they will make in the App Store in the future (but they have been relatively good about that in the past, with a few missteps).

basicallydan2• 12 years ago

True, but it's nice to be recognised anyway. I'm sure the awards have given them a little bump in popularity.

I think that 2048 is a more accessible game. It takes zero time to figure out how it works. Whereas Threes is a little more complex. I enjoyed figuring out how it works, though.

Igglyboo• 12 years ago

I totally agree with Monument Valley. One of the most beautiful and unique games I've played in a long time, it's also a great example that you don't need to push a lot of pixels if you have good artists.

pling4• 12 years ago

I agree it looks pretty but it took me 40 minutes to complete all ten levels. Thats not very good value for money.

aaronblohowiak• 12 years ago

Duration is not the most important metric for value of an experience for me.

Would you compare the quantity of food received at a fast food joint vs fine dining?

onmydesk• 12 years ago

40 minutes for a couple of bucks, you ever been to an amusement arcade?

Not good value for money!! AN APP!!! And on HN as well. Unbelievable

prezjordan2• 12 years ago

Takes me 3 minutes to down a cup of cof-- you know what let's not go down this road.

asselinpaul• 12 years ago

Agreed!

icebraining• 12 years ago

Have you tried Echochrome[1]? From the images, it seems like a pretty version of the latter. Does it have more to it?

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echochrome

prezjordan2• 12 years ago

The game has the same mechanics as Echochrome, but can you interact with the environment in Echochrome, or can you just rotate the scene? Monument Valley has a lot of switches and wheels to turn that open up new pathways.

It's also super beautiful, not just black and white (not that that isn't beautiful as well!)

ececconi• 12 years ago

Monument Valley is one of the most beautiful and serene games I've ever played.

NicoJuicy• 12 years ago

I'm no Apple fan, but seeing Threes in the list..

I have to admit, thumbs up

joshdance• 12 years ago

Monument Valley was one of the best mobile gaming experiences I have ever had. My jaw literally dropped a few times at the clever reveals.

quarterto• 12 years ago

Adding further polish are cClever sound effects and a catchy music score add further polish.

Might want to have a look at that copyediting.

sdernley• 12 years ago

Sky guide looks great. Hadn't heard of it before but can't wait to download and give it a try tonight. Anyone else using it?

phenylene• 12 years ago

It's excellent! The background sound is great too (from the musician that did some of Osmos's music).

arrrg4• 12 years ago

It’s excellent! The attention to detail is awesome, as is the thoughtfulness put into each and every feature (and the feature selection). Plus, the dev is super nice and friendly when you report bugs to them.

I have gained a much better understanding of what I see in the sky. It’s nice to be able to pull up this app as soon as you see something in the sky and be able to tell what it is. Of course, other apps do that, too, but none do it as nicely.

I recommend going ISS watching with it. (Requires an IAP, I think, but as always app prices are disastrously low.) The ISS is really bright and easy to see, plus the thought of six people soaring by up there is quite uplifting. And without the app this would always be a thing you have to plan for, not a thing you accidentally see after dinner, then walk out to the big town square to see the ISS go by with the people you were eating with.

gdubs• 12 years ago

I definitely recommend checking out the ADA winners if you're an app developer. It's really good to see what Apple deems award-winning, and can be very inspiring for your own work.

eieio2• 12 years ago

Good to see Blek on there. One of the most interesting and unique games I've played in a while, and it's absolutely beautifully designed.

I haven't seen too many people talking about it on HN even though it's been near the top of the charts in the app store recently: definitely check it out if you have a chance!

weaksauce• 12 years ago

just picked it up and it's quite good. super interesting game mechanic and not one that I have played before.

eieio2• 12 years ago

I love the mechanic and it actually took me a bit of time to fully grasp how it works (although perhaps I'm a bit slow).

Just in case you haven't realized, the line that you draw will continue the exact pattern that you draw, no matter what you draw, until you release or connect the line with a dot. There is a time limit on drawing but you have a lot of time.

I had originally assumed that some kind of physics were applied to the line once you release it but this is not the case.

Once I realized how the game worked, I got really into finding elegant solutions for the later levels. You can "cheat" many of the levels with ugly solutions, but there's almost always a very simple pattern you can draw that will solve the level. Finding these simple patterns is extremely satisfying.

danra• 12 years ago

Device 6 is amazing. Reminded me of a David Lynch movie.

kosei• 12 years ago

What's most interesting to me about this is that not a single one of these apps is a free-to-play app. Freemium apps have a lot of room to grow on the design front and this could be a serious differentiator for certain apps.

Apple Design Awards 2014

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