It’s the only way we can be sure what we make is relevant and fun for our target audience. Since the launch of Toca Boca, involving kids in our work and world has been at the top of our agenda when creating our apps. Luckily, we have expert help, and yes, that means kids. It’s a fine line to tread between being the true childhood ally we want to be and being someone who tries too hard to be down with kids. This kids-first approach means we consider everything we do and say primarily from a kid’s perspective rather than a grownup’s.

And sure, this should not mean we don't encourage our children to play real tea parties, but it is a nice way to play the game sometimes when we'd prefer to avoid the mess.Toca Boca’s main guiding principle is simple: kids first. The nice thing is when drinks spill (and they do on the app) the child uses a digital cloth to wipe it up. There is a radio to control for music and I've watched children use this app as a way to inspire real tea parties, or sit down with their soft toys and play tea party through the app. Children choose their food and drink, their plate and cup type. It is a digital tea party right there on the iPad that works because the device sits on the table and the table is just an extension of the tea party interface on the iPad. Toca Tea Party can be played by up to four children. Toca Boca have captured the essence of social play well in these apps, but they have done it best in Toca Tea Party. The actual technical design is not complex, the thought behind how to design these in a way that work for children aged 2 to 5 years is.

As a hairdresser in Toca's hair salon you can comb, cut, blow wave, color and shave hair (and take a photo of it when you are done). Toca Doctor is essentially a diagnostics game that aligns different game environments to cure disease and injury in different parts of the body that a child can select.

In simple, playful environments they let children take on the role of doctor or hairdresser with ease and fun. Two recent apps, Toca Doctor and Toca Hair Salon both do this really well.

Toca boca play game