If the global success of open-ended games like Minecraft have taught the kids digital media community anything, it’s that creativity knows no bounds.
At least that rings true when it comes to the latest stats from analytics database App Annie, which shows that Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars from TribePlay is currently the number-one educational iPad app across the US, Canada, France, Japan, Italy, South Korea, Russia, China, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.
Global appetites for similar play-based apps also mean Toca Boca’s Toca Hair Salon 2 also falls within the top-five apps in more than half of these countries.
China-based TribePlay’s suite of Dr. Panda games, which surpassed a total of 22 million downloads last week after launching Toy Cars on May 8, share striking similarities to Toca Boca’s role-play model, as both games hinge on honing kids’ creative skills, as opposed to being steeped in math and languages.
Read on for the most recent snapshot of the global app charts.
Top five paid educational iPad apps
US
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Wallykazam! Letter and Word Magic HD – Nickelodeon
Stack the States – Freecloud Design
Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca
Wild Kratts World Adventure – PBS KIDS
Canada
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca
Explain Everything – MorrisCooke
Playtime With Dora the Explorer – Viacom International
Dinosaur Train A to Z – PBS KIDS
Australia
Explain Everything – MorrisCooke
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Rainbow Loom Designs Pro – Guide for Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced & Charms – Sapphire Apps
Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca
Eggy 250 HD – Blake eLearning
Netherlands
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Dr. Panda’s Airport – TribePlay
Playtime With Dora the Explorer – Viacom International
Dr. Panda’s Supermarket – TribePlay
Letters leren lezen – Juf Jannie Shoto
Singapore
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca
Toca Cars – Toca Boca
Toca Train – Toca Boca
Team Umizoomi: Zoom into Numbers HD – Viacom International Inc.
UK
Dr. Panda’s Toy Cars – TribePlay
Theory Test UK HD, Driving Test Success – Focus Multimedia
Toca Hair Salon 2 – Toca Boca
Star Walk HD – 5 Stars Astronomy Guide – Vito Technology
Explain Everything – MorrisCooke