Toca Boca Explained

Toca Boca
Type:Subsidiary
Location City:Stockholm
Location Country:Sweden
Area Served:Worldwide
Products:Games
digital toys
Num Employees:100-150
Parent:Spin Master

Toca Boca is a Swedish children's mobile video game developer.[1] [2] The company is owned by Spin Master and is based in Stockholm, Sweden.

Toca Boca was founded July 18, 2010 by Emil Ovemar and Björn Jeffery, both of whom worked for the Bonnier Group.[3] They released their first application, “Helicopter Taxi” in March 2011.[4] [5] Toca Boca's apps has been downloaded more than 400 million times by users in over 238 markets ever since the first launch.

In 2016, Bonnier sold Toca Boca to the Canadian toy and entertainment company Spin Master for SEK 263 million.[6] [7] In 2020, Fredrik Löving took over as Toca Boca's new CEO.[8]

Naming

Toca Boca means "Touch the mouth" in Spanish and comes from the logo design of a face with its mouth open.[9]

Toca Life series

Toca Life is a series of games that encourage the player to imagine stories for characters in the game. The player can drag the character around the screen with their finger and make the characters eat, sit, etc. In the series, there are different locations the character could go to based on the game's theme. (Town, Farm, Office, etc.) There are groups such as Kids, Elders, Babies, and Creatures. The player can add more than one character to a scene. Dressing up the characters was introduced in Toca Life: City.

Toca Life World previously named Toca Boca World, was released on November 21, 2018. Unlike the rest of the games in this series, the app is free to download. Players are invited to play the free version or to customise the app with whatever options they find the most interesting. A player can buy more characters and places.

A web series based on the game, under the title Toca Life Stories, was released on February 21, 2020 on Toca Boca's official YouTube channel. It focused on four close friends with mismatched personalities, Rita, Zeke, Nari, and Leon (the main characters in the Toca Life app series), on a quest to vanquish boredom in their neighborhood of OK Street (based on one of the towns found in Toca Boca World).[10] The series is animated by Canada-based Pipeline Studios, with voices recorded in America-based Studiopolis, despite it being a web series, it aired on some television stations such as Pop in the United Kingdom, and Cartoon Network in the United States.

On April 30th, 2024, Toca Boca Days was announced.[11] [12] The game is poised as a significant departure from previous entries in the Toca Life series, utilising a 3D world with multiplayer functionality.[13] On May 2th, 2024, Toca began rolling the game out in early access for Australia and New Zealand.[14]

Digital toys

The term digital toy is sometimes used to differentiate certain apps from more typical virtual games.[15] While most aspects between the two are the same, Toca Boca distinguishes digital toys as more "open-ended" with fewer rules. However, neither are thought nor proven to have a more or less harmful or beneficial impact on players. While these "digital toys" are aimed towards children, it does not mean they are just for children.

Awards and honors

Toca Boca has won the following awards:

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Spin Master Corp. (2021). Annual Report 2021. . www.downloads.ctfassets.net.
  2. Web site: 2014-05-20 . Toca Boca makes the kind of games kids can't possibly beat - so why have their apps been downloaded 67 million times? (video interview) . 2023-01-27 . Tech.eu . en-GB.
  3. Web site: Newnham . Danielle . 2015-12-13 . The Toca Boca Story . 2023-01-27 . The Startup . en.
  4. Sterling . Bruce . Augmented Reality: Toca Boca Helicopter Taxi . en-US . Wired . 2023-01-27 . 1059-1028.
  5. Williams . Jenny . Toca Boca Continues to Deliver Great Apps . en-US . Wired . 2023-01-27 . 1059-1028.
  6. Web site: Bonnier - Bonnier's App Hit Toca Boca to Get New Owner . 2023-01-27 . Bonnier.
  7. Web site: AB . Breaking Media . Dokument avslöjar: Så mycket fick Bonnier för Toca Boca . 2023-01-27 . www.breakit.se . sv.
  8. Web site: 2020-06-19 . Spin Master ramps its game business as toys go digital . 2023-01-27 . VentureBeat . en-US.
  9. Web site: Rosoff . Matt . An 8-year-old interviews the cofounder of the company who makes her favorite app . 2023-01-27 . Business Insider . en-US.
  10. Web site: Whyte . Alexandra . Toca Boca launches first animated series . Kidscreen . Alexandra Whyte . July 30, 2021.
  11. Web site: Corp . Spin Master . For The First Time Ever, Toca Boca® Is Entering the Multiplayer Universe with the Release of Toca Boca Days™ . 2024-07-27 . www.prnewswire.com . en.
  12. Web site: Kaser . Rachel . 2024-04-30 . Spin Master announces multiplayer game Toca Boca Days . 2024-07-27 . VentureBeat . en-US.
  13. Web site: Bloom . David . Spin Master’s Toca Boca Takes On Roblox With First Multi-Player Push . 2024-07-27 . Forbes . en.
  14. Web site: Instagram . 2024-07-27 . www.instagram.com.
  15. Web site: FLETCHER-WATSON . Ben . June 2014 . From stage to screen: adapting a children's theatre production into a digital toy .
  16. Web site: Kidscreen Awards.
  17. Web site: iPhone App of the Year: Toca Life World.
  18. Web site: NEW Webby Gallery + Index.
  19. Web site: Nickelodeon leads Kidscreen Awards 2019 noms. 2019-07-22.
  20. Web site: Parent's Choice: Toca Life: World. 2019-07-22.
  21. Web site: These are the 397 most inspiring, innovative designs of 2018. Fast Company. en-US. 2019-07-22.
  22. Web site: Toca Life: Hospital Kapi Awards. kapiawards.com. en-US. 2019-07-22.
  23. Web site: Toca Life: World – Parents' Choice. en-US. 2019-07-22.
  24. Web site: Kidscreen Reveals Summit Nominees. 2017-12-13. License Global. en. 2019-07-22.
  25. Web site: 2017 Kidscreen Awards. Kidscreen.
  26. Web site: Webby Awards. WebbyAwards.
  27. Web site: Children's Tech. Children's Tech Review.
  28. Web site: iKids Award. Kidscreen.
  29. Web site: Cinekid. Cinekid.
  30. Web site: NAPPA. NAPPA Awards.
  31. Web site: The Lovie Awards. Lovie Awards. 21 February 2023.
  32. Web site: Junior Design Awards. Junior Magazine.
  33. Web site: Macstories. Spencer. Graham. Mac Stories. 8 December 2014 . 26 June 2015.
  34. Web site: Children's Tech. Children's Technology Review. 26 June 2015.
  35. Web site: Bestekinderapps. Best Kinder Apps. 26 June 2015.
  36. Web site: Toronto 4 Kids. Toronto 4 Kids. 26 June 2015.
  37. Web site: Kidscreen. 26 June 2015.
  38. Web site: Parents Choice. Parents' Choice. 26 June 2015.
  39. Web site: Parents Choice. Parents' Choice. 26 June 2015.
  40. Web site: Parents Choice. Parents' Choice. 26 June 2015.
  41. Web site: Parents Choice. Parents' Choice. 26 June 2015.
  42. Web site: Parents Choice. Parents' Choice. 26 June 2015.
  43. Web site: Toca Boca Website: Press: Awards Page. Tocaboca.com. 2014-02-05.
  44. Web site: NAPPA Website. Nappaawards.com. 2014-02-05.
  45. Web site: Parents' Choice Award: Toca Boca Page. Parents-choice.org. 2014-02-05.
  46. News: Telenor Awards Press Release. Telenor.com. 2014-02-05.
  47. News: Business Wire: Toca Hair Salon Named 2011.... Oct 25, 2011. Businesswire.com.

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