Apple has released a list of their top picks for games on its devices from 2019, which include several notable indie titles. The games included on this list “reflect [Apple’s] global desire for connection, creativity, and fun,” according to Apple senior vice president of worldwide marketing Phil Schiller.
In the iOS category, they named thatgamecompany’s Sky: Children of the Light the best iPhone game of the year, which we included in our Top 10 Mobile Games of July list at #1. Though it’s only available on iOS now, it will eventually make its way to Android, PC, and console. For iPad, Abylight S.L.’s Hyper Light Drifter was named best game of the year, which also made it onto our July Top 10 Mobile Games list at #4.
For Mac, Devolver and Nomada Studio’s GRIS was deemed the best game of the year. GRIS will soon be available on Nintendo Switch and PC as well, starting December 13. Apple TV had its own category as well, with DotEmu’s Wonder Boy: The Dragon’s Trap, a remake of the 1989 game Wonder Boy III: The Dragon’s Trap, being deemed number one for its platform.
Lastly, Apple included its own recent gaming subscription service, Apple Arcade, naming Simogo’s Sayonara Wild Hearts the best game on the new platform.
Apple summarized the games across their platforms this year as “blockbusters reimagined,” as they mentioned games like Mario Kart Tour, Minecraft Earth, Pokémon Masters, and Call of Duty as “original releases that breathed new life into the most beloved franchises in gaming history.”
At the end of their list, Apple included a link to a page on the App Store listing the most downloaded games of the year, both free and paid. Unsurprisingly, Mario Kart Tour continues to dominate the free chart, after surpassing 90 million downloads in its first week after alone. Further down the list is the aforementioned Call of Duty and the ever-popular Fortnite. In the paid section, Minecraft retains its top spot, yet another unsurprisingly placement, given that Minecraft became the bestselling video game of all time earlier this year.