It’s been a big year for trainers, both literally and figuratively. Building on the chunky styles that set 2017’s Richter scales racing, in 2018 platform-esque stompers made way for nineties-inspired dad shoes. We also saw technology come on in leaps and bounds with innovations like Nike‘s React cushioning system and the rollout of Adidas’s 3D-printed Futurecraft model, making the footwear market easily one of the most exciting sectors of menswear. Elsewhere, we were treated to see-through uppers and the emergence of trail-running shoes as a fashion item (neither of which we saw coming). But even among all the madness, this year has also given us some solid gold classics. With so much going on, you’d think it’d be difficult to pick the best trainers of 2018. (And it was.) But that’s what we’ve done. Here are they are, and the reasons why they stood out from the crowd.

Nike’s Air Jordan subdivision is the biggest name in the game. If it hadn’t have been for designer Tinker Hatfield and his future-shaping basketball shoes, the modern sneakerhead as we know them may not even exist. Meanwhile, Californian brand Levi’s is the king of denim. Bring the two together, and naturally, you’ve got something rather special.

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Adidas Alphabounce Instinct

If disturbing psychedelic painter H.R. Giger had designed a shoe, it would probably have looked a little something like this. Looks-wise, the Alphabounce Instinct is so odd that you can’t help but stare at it, and the more you stare at it, the more you think, ‘actually, that would look pretty sweet on my shoe rack.’ It’s not all aesthetics, either, there’s a lot going on under the hood here. Designed with athletes in mind, the Alphabounce Instinct takes cues from the movement of the human body and its adaptive design is supposed to allow the wearer to move more instinctively while running.