Canadian game developers top Apple’s 2016 year-end ‘best of’ list

Apple, staying true to its yearly tradition, has released its 2016 “best of” year-end list, revealing top selling apps, as well as the top apps, games, books and movies selected by the company’s editorial team.

Top editorial iPad games include two Canadian titles, Severed, a dungeon crawler developed by Toronto-based Drinkbox Studios, and Chameleon Run, a mobile title published by Saskatchewan-based company Noodlecake Studios, coming in as runner up in the category.

When it comes to Apple TV, Sportnet’s recently released app took home top honours. Toronto born rapper Drake won the top award for best song with One Dance, with the best movie award going to Deadpool, which stars Vancouver’s Ryan Reynolds.

In terms of top selling games in Canada, Pokemon Go came out on top, followed by Game of War: Fire Age, Clash of Clans and Mobile Strike, proving once again that expensive television advertisements and a free-to-play business model are still key to success in Apple’s App Store. Top paid apps include Face Sway Live, Heads Up! and Minecraft Pocket Edition.

Find all of the App Store’s top selling apps and and Apple’s top editorial picks below:

Top selling

Songs

1. Drake – One Dance (feat. Wizkid & Kyla)
2. Lukas Graham – 7 Years
3. Mike Posner – I Took a Pill in Ibiza (Seeb Remix)
4. Twenty one pilots – Stressed Out
5. Justin Bieber – Love Yourself
6. Justin Timberlake – Can’t Stop the Feeling
7. Sia – Cheap Thrills (feat. Sean Paul)
8. Flo Rida – My House
9. The Chainsmokers – Closer (feat. Halsey)
10. Calvin Harris – This is What You Came For (feat. Rihanna)

Albums

1. Drake – Views
2. Justin Bieber – Purpose (deluxe)
3. Adele – 25
4. Rihanna – Anti (deluxe)
5. Twenty one pilots – Blurryface
6. The Lumineers – Cleopatra (deluxe)
7. The Tragically Hip – Yer Favourites
8. Frank Ocean – Blonde
9. Sia – This is Acting
10. The Weeknd – Beauty Behind the Madness

Movies

1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
2. Deadpool
3. Zootopia
4. The Martian
5. Spectre
6. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2
7. Captain America: Civil War
8. The Revenant
9. Spotlight
10. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

TV Shows

1. Game of Thrones
2. Suits
3. Homeland
4. Downton Abbey
5. The Walking Dead
6. Outlander
7. Grey’s Anatomy
8. Pretty Little Liars
9. The Big Bang Theory
10. The Americans

Podcasts

1. The Current from CBC Radio
2. Stuff You Should Know
3. The Joe Rogan Experience
4. Serial
5. TEDTalks (audio)
6. This American Life
7. Freakonomics Radio
8. Planet Money from NPR
9. Ideas from CBC Radio
10. Global News Podcast from BBC World Service

Paid apps

1. Face Swap Live
2. Heads Up!
3. Minecraft: Pocket Edition
4. Facetune
5. Geometry Dash
6. 7 Minute Workout
7. Plague Inc.
8. Kimoji
9. Akinator the Genie
10. Bloods TD 5

Grossing apps

1. Pokémon GO
2. Game of War — Fire Age
3. Clash of Clans
4. Mobile Strike
5. Clash Royale
6. Candy Crush Saga
7. Spotify Music
8. Slotomania Slots
9. Tinder
10. Marvel Contest of Champions

Apple Editorial picks

Music — Best Song
1. One Dance, Drake
2. Les échardes, Charlotte Cardin

Music Best — Album
1. 99.9%, Kaytranada
2. Ultramar, Fred Fortin

Books (English)
1. Do Not Say We Have Nothing, Madeleine Thien
2. In-Between Days, Teva Harrison

Books (French)
1. Les Empêcheurs, Yves Beauchemin
2. S’enfuir. Récit d’un otage, Guy Delisle

Movies
1. Deadpool
2. Finding Dory

TV 
1. Game of Thrones
2. American Crime Story: The People V OJ Simpson

iPhone Apps