Overview
With Dr. Panda Candy Factory, kids explore three interactive buildings of a candy factory. In each, they help design the candy that is being made by deciding its shape and taste. Completed trays of candies arrive at the factory store where players feed their creations to hungry animal friends who give them visual feedback as to whether they like the candy or not.
Three interactive Candy-Making Buildings
From the home screen, kids tap on one of three buildings. In one, they design chocolates by putting on toppings and changing their shapes. In another building, they create jellies by deciding the color, flavoring, and shapes. And in the third building, they design bubble gum by controlling its size, color, and design.
Encourages Multiplayer Fun
While making the different candies, kids explore and use number of machines. When a player activates a machine, such as the one about frosting a chocolate candy, the machine covers half of the screen. A second player can activate another machine on the other half of the screen so that each player can explore a separate machine.
In the bubble gum building, the equipment for shaping the gum looks like a pinball machine. There are four different areas to explore, and some offer pinball flippers to ricochet the gumballs off of colored dyes.
App Analysis
As with most other Dr. Panda apps, this app doesn't provide any instructions or tutorials. Kids experiment to discover how to become master confectioners. The app presents an interface that welcomes touch and entices exploration. Green buttons glow, and conveyor belts move. Robotic arms respond to your touch. This is an app about exploring the "what ifs" -- what if you move the robotic arm to the nuts? What if you turn the red dial?
With the ability to explore all this sweetness with a friend, sibling, or parent, Dr. Panda Candy Factory creates a way for two to four people to bond over playing an app.
While there is some learning involved -- in remembering the steps to make your favorite candies and in learning to make secondary colors from mixing primary color dyes -- Dr. Panda Candy Factory isn't really focused on education. Rather, it's a kids' entertainment app. It's fun to explore at first, but once the novelty wears off, your kids might not return to this app very often.
Best For
Dr. Panda Candy Factory provides a digital way for kids to make virtual candy. With no rules and no time limits, kids are free to create and explore the possibilities presented within the app. It is a good fit for creative kids who have a sweet tooth. Parents might want to download this app for a playdate or for siblings to explore together while on a trip.
This kids' app review of Dr. Panda Candy Factory was written by Jinny Gudmundsen.
All tech products are judged on a five star scale by looking at the following factors: fun, education, ease of use, value, and technical.
