14 DAY TRIAL // As it happens every year, Google will announce the winners of the Google Play Awards during its I/O event, to be held on May 18. In anticipation of the event, Google has revealed the nominees and introduced two new categories to the line-up.
The new categories include the Best VR, with nominees that provide a “highly engaging and immersive experience with optimal use of Daydream UI,” while apps and games nominated in the Best AR Experience harness the creative and imaginative technology of AR.
Another new category is Best Multiplayer Game, as well as Best Social Impact and Best Accessibility Experience. Google also stated that some nominated apps and games come from countries like China, South Korea, Brazil, Russia, France, Vietnam and Uruguay, revealing that the Play store is popular all around the world.
Winners of the 12 categories will be announced in May
The main requirements for all nominated apps and games in their specific category is a high star rating, technical performance and freshness, as well as the obligation to have launched a major update since April 2016.
One notable nominee is Pokemon GO in the Best Game category, but Nintendo’s Super Mario Run isn’t among the nominees. Memrise and Fabulous compete in the Best App section, together with Citymapper, Money Lover and Quik, as each section has five nominees.
Another interesting category is the Best Android Wear Experience, with nominees like Bring!, Foursquare City Guide, Runtastic and more. IFTTT and SwiftKey Symbols are also competing in the Best Accessibility Experience category with apps or games that enable device interaction in an innovative way that services people with disabilities or special needs.
Last year’s Google Play Awards had ten categories, with Houzz being the Best Overall App, while Clash Royale won the Best Game category. Google’s Play Awards are quite important for developers of Android-running apps, as they will get more recognition and be featured on a dedicated section in the Google Play Store.