Australian-made iPhone app named on Apple’s official list of top apps

An iPhone game that made an Australian app studio over one million dollars in six months has been named one of the best apps of the year by tech giant Apple, as part of the company’s end-of-year recognition for quality software.

As part of Apple’s Rewind awards, the tech giant also noted camera app Hipstamatic, Angry Birds and iPad social magazine app Flipboard as some of the most outstanding apps of the year.

Queensland-based Half Brick studios is behind the Fruit Ninja app, which was named in the top 10 paid iPhone apps category. The game itself, along with another app – Monster Dash – have earned Half Brick over $2 million in six months and have consistently stayed in the Australian top 10.

Studio chief Shaniel Deo told SmartCompany earlier this year the success of Fruit Ninja and Monster Dash is a testament to how much the App Store has changed since its release. Apps now require dedicated marketing campaigns, as opposed to when the store was small enough that developers could post an app and have it become successful within days.

“You’re always surprised with the App Store. It’s a roll of the dice, and we knew we had a launch right. I guess I’m surprised at how quickly it’s taken off, because it’s been the top five ever since and doesn’t really move out of the spot much. It’s providing a constant stream of revenue, the tail on that game is phenomenal and it just keeps going.”

“I think the whole process has shown how crucial marketing is. A lot of people don’t even think about marketing themselves until their product is finished, but we made sure that we had everything in place to go. It takes time to build relationships with the press, you can’t just finish a product and then get them to feature you.”

Apple also announced top apps for different categories, with Hipstamatic, SwankoLab and Instagram taking out a special mention for the “shoot, edit, share” category, while Instapaper, Pulse News Mini and the ABC all received mentions for “New News”.

Users are also able to check out top apps in a number of different categories on the iTunes Store, with sections including: Hardcore Games, Retro Revival Games, Multiplayer Games, On The Grid (location-based apps), Personal Trainer, Band In Your Hand, Interactive Stories, Mobile Office, Magazines & Newspapers and Pen & Brush.

Here are some of the top apps of the year, as ranked by Apple:

Overall Top 10 Paid iPhone Apps

• Angry Birds
• Doodle Jump – BE WARNED: Insanely Addictive!
• Skee-Ball
• Bejeweled 2 + Blitz
• Fruit Ninja
• Cut the Rope
• ALL-IN-1 GAMEBOX
• The Moron Test
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Pocket God

Overall Top 10 Free iPhone Apps

• Facebook
• Angry Birds Lite
• Words With Friends Free
• Skype
• Tap Tap Revenge 3
• The Weather Channel®
• Paper Toss
• Bing
• Rock Band Free
• Talking Tom Cat

Overall Top 10 Grossing iPhone Apps

• MLB.com At Bat 2010
• Angry Birds
• Call of Duty: Zombies
• Bejeweled 2 + Blitz
• FriendCaller 3 Pro
• Zombie Farm
• TomTom U.S.A.
• TETRIS®
• Plants vs. Zombies
• Doodle Jump

Overall Top 10 Paid iPad Apps

• Pages
• GoodReader for iPad
• Numbers
• Angry Birds HD
• Keynote
• Glee Karaoke
• WolframAlpha
• Pinball HD
• Friendly for Facebook
• Star Walk for iPad

Overall Top 10 Free iPad Apps

• iBooks
• Pandora Radio
• Netflix
• Google Mobile App
• Solitaire
• Movies by Flixster – with Rotten Tomatoes
• IMDb Movies & TV
• Kindle
• Google Earth
• Virtuoso Piano Free 2 HD

Overall Top 10 Grossing iPad Apps

• Pages
• Numbers
• Keynote
• LogMeIn Ignition
• SCRABBLE for iPad
• Documents To Go
• Angry Birds HD
• Real Racing HD
• Plants vs. Zombies HD
• Proloquo2Go