Apple's 2024 Design Award winners run the gamut of classic puzzle games to immersive experiences

Ahead of WWDC, Apple has announced the winners of its latest Apple Design Awards, celebrating the best in apps and games from around the world.

Apple appears to be clearing the decks ahead of a busy WWDC. Uncharacteristically, it has announced the Apple Design Winners before WWDC, instead of during the event.

"It's inspiring to see how developers are using our technology to create exceptional apps and games that enhance the lives of users," Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Worldwide Developer Relations said in a statement. "This year's winners have demonstrated how apps can create powerful and moving experiences -- and we're excited to celebrate their hard work and ingenuity at WWDC this year."

This year the awards have been presented in seven categories, including a new spatial computing one. Each category has one app and one game winner.

Design Awards -- Spatial Computing

For the inaugural Spatial Computing design award, the winning app is djay pro - DJ App & AI Mixer by algoriddim GmbH (Germany). Apple says it is "an entirely new way to interact with music."

The game award was won by Blackbox by Shapes and Stories (United States). It's a puzzle game where details "gently unfold around the player and curiosity is rewarded."

Design Awards -- Delight and Fun

Bears Gratitude

by Isuru Wanasinghe (Australia), took the app award for offering honest self-reflection, via "thoughtfully crafted characters" that "create a sense of warmth and routine."

The New York Times took the Delight and Fun game award for its NYT Games. Apple described the game as including "a compelling mix of titles.

Design Awards -- Inclusivity

Developer AYES from Belgium won the Inclusivity app prize for oko. It's an app that alerts "pedestrians to the state of signal lights through haptic and audio feedback."

Cayola Adventures by Red Games Co (United States) won the game part of this category. Apple called it a "delightful game experience" for all ages.

Design Awards -- Innovation

Procreate Dreams

by Procreate (Australia) brings "powerful animated effects, audio, and video" that makes users' artwork come to life.

Lost in Play by Happy Juice Games (Israel) is a "charming adventure through childhood imagination." It features hand-drawn graphics throughout.

Design Awards -- Interaction

The Croutonrecipe and grocery shopping app took the prize for Interaction because of how it "lets users keep their focus" on their cooking instead of the screen.

Whereas Rytmos by Floppy Club (Denmark) keeps you absorbed as solving puzzles leads to users through even as "the game starts delivering more complexity."

Design Awards -- Social Impact

Gentler Streak Fitness Tracker

by Gentler Shores (Slovenia), is an "optimistic and encouraging" app that aims to help with both "physical fitness and mental wellbeing."

The Wreck by The Pixel Hunt (France) is described as less a game, more an "eloquently written" visual novel.

Design Awards -- Visual and Graphics

Blurring the line between app and game, Rooms by Things, Inc (United States), is a "blank slate for building imaginative scenes". It's used for casual gaming, and allows users to interact with other people's creations.

Winning game Lies of P also tells a tale, this time allowing players to control a certain robotic puppet made by Geppetto.

The developers of all the winning apps and games are also showcased in Apple's Developer website.