The App Store Awards Are In — What Makes This Year’s Winners Different?

As 2025 draws to a close, one of Apple’s most anticipated annual highlights—the App Store Awards—has arrived right on schedule, shining a spotlight on the apps and games that defined the year.

This year marks a notable change for the Chinese mainland market. For the first time, the App Store Awards there were judged and presented independently, with only two major honors: App of the Year and Game of the Year. The nominated titles and winners are as follows. App of the Year was awarded to CapWords, with Tide and CamScanner as finalists. Game of the Year went to VALORANT: Energy Operation, with Infinity Nikki and Adventurer’s Diary also shortlisted.

In international markets, Apple continued with last year’s award structure, spotlighting standout apps across all major platforms to reflect the evolving trends of the App Store ecosystem. Apple also retained the “Cultural Impact” category, honoring five apps that have made a meaningful impact on global lifestyles and cultural expression.

The global winners showcased both creativity and innovation. Tiimo claimed iPhone App of the Year by helping users plan daily tasks and establish healthy routines through visual, intelligent tools. Detail won iPad App of the Year with its AI-powered video editing workflow that simplifies professional content creation. Essayist earned Mac App of the Year by providing structured writing and formatting tools for academic creators. Explore POV captured Apple Vision Pro App of the Year with immersive first-person experiences that let users explore the world. Strava took Apple Watch App of the Year by combining fitness tracking with a powerful social community. HBO Max won Apple TV App of the Year by delivering premium entertainment on the big screen. In gaming, Pokémon TCG Pocket won iPhone Game of the Year for reinventing classic card collection and battles, DREDGE claimed iPad Game of the Year with its eerie blend of fishing and adventure, Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition secured Mac Game of the Year with its richly detailed open-world future city, Porta Nubi won Vision Pro Game of the Year with spatial puzzle gameplay, and WHAT THE CLASH? took Apple Arcade Game of the Year for its fun, fast-paced multiplayer battles.

The Cultural Impact Award went to an inspiring lineup including Art of Fauna, which connects users with nature through artistic animal illustrations and puzzles; Chants of Sennaar, which explores communication through language and culture; despelote, which tells personal and social stories through everyday life; Be My Eyes, which combines AI and volunteer networks to support visually impaired users; Focus Friend, which improves attention through goal setting and focus tools; and StoryGraph, which uses data-driven reading analysis to foster diverse literary communities.

After winning an Apple Design Award earlier this year, CapWords claimed another major victory by securing the App Store Awards less than a year after launch. Developer Ace shared that the app was inspired by a personal moment with his daughter. When she once asked how to say a street sign in English and he couldn’t answer, the idea for CapWords was born. His daughter’s love for stickers—placing them all around the house—ultimately shaped the app’s signature feature, using photos of stickers to connect words with real-world memory.

By simply taking photos and turning daily objects into “memory stickers,” CapWords creates an intuitive and natural learning process. Its seamless integration of AI into everyday life helps users solve real-world learning needs effortlessly, a key reason the team believes the app earned its top honor.

Originally launched in 2020 by Riot Games, VALORANT is known for combining precise gunplay, hero abilities, and deep team strategy in a 5v5 competitive shooter format. It quickly became one of the world’s most popular esports titles and Riot’s second flagship franchise outside of League of Legends.

VALORANT: Energy Operation is the mobile version co-developed by Riot Games and Tencent’s Lightspeed Studios, currently exclusive to the Chinese mainland on iOS, iPadOS, and Android. It faithfully recreates the core gameplay and hero system of the original PC title while supporting ranked matches, team battles, and fair competitive play, satisfying both hardcore and casual players.

Riot Games Global Head of VALORANT Studios, Anna Donlon, explained that the decision to launch the mobile version exclusively in China was rooted in the long-standing, deep partnership with Tencent. Tencent’s strength in game development and player community operations gave Riot the confidence to move forward. The success of VALORANT’s long-term operation in China also showcased the cohesion and passion of the local player community, reinforcing Riot’s decision to continue the collaboration.

Riot believes that the successful rollout in China will lay a strong foundation for the game’s future global launch, allowing the team to deliver a more mature, fully validated mobile experience to players worldwide.

On the global stage, AI continued to play a central role in this year’s App Store Awards. The Apps of the Year across iPhone, iPad, and Mac all leveraged AI to enhance daily planning, creative expression, and academic productivity, delivering real improvements in convenience and efficiency.

In gaming, each winning title fully embraced the strengths of its respective platform. Pokémon TCG Pocket transformed traditional physical card gameplay into a touch-friendly digital experience. DREDGE delivered outstanding gameplay, visuals, and narrative flow on the iPad’s larger screen. Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition took full advantage of Apple silicon on Mac, offering MetalFX dynamic resolution scaling, ray tracing, HDR, and spatial audio to achieve both visual excellence and smooth performance.

Looking back on the past year, the App Store continued to evolve alongside developers, strengthening the overall app ecosystem and creating greater opportunities for innovation. For users, new accessibility labels now clearly indicate whether apps support features such as VoiceOver, zoom, voice control, and larger text, helping people with disabilities determine suitability in advance. The new Declared Age Rating API also enables age-appropriate content delivery, giving parents better tools to protect children’s online safety.

For developers, Apple introduced the Mini Apps Partner Program, offering more flexible development models, greater exposure, and new revenue opportunities. The new App Store Connect API streamlines app branch uploads and publishing. Apple-Hosted Background Assets allow developers to host large app content through Apple’s CDN, making content updates and distribution more efficient.

These efforts highlight Apple’s focus in 2025 on accessibility, inclusivity, and technical optimization in content distribution. By continuously refining tools and policies, the App Store is helping both developers and users adapt to evolving business models and a rapidly growing global app economy.

As in previous years, winners of the App Store Awards receive a physical trophy designed and produced by Apple, with the developer’s name engraved on the back. The two winning teams from the Chinese mainland were also invited to Los Angeles to join the global celebration hosted by Apple. The trophies are crafted from 100% recycled aluminum and inspired by the iconic blue App Store logo.

With so many familiar and beloved apps taking the spotlight this year, what do you think of the 2025 App Store Awards—and which app deserves the title of your personal App of the Year?