Common Sense Media Review
By Dana Anderson
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Eerie exploration and playful puzzles appeal to older kids.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 7+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Download
Videos and Photos
Toca Mystery House
Privacy Rating Warning
Privacy Rating
Our expert evaluators create our privacy ratings. The ratings are designed to help you understand how apps use your data for commercial purposes.
Pass
Meets our minimum requirements for privacy and security practices.
Warning
Does not meet our recommendations for privacy and security practices.
Fail
Does not have a privacy policy and should not be used.
Privacy Rating
Our expert evaluators create our privacy ratings. The ratings are designed to help you understand how apps use your data for commercial purposes.
Pass
Meets our minimum requirements for privacy and security practices.
Warning
Does not meet our recommendations for privacy and security practices.
Fail
Does not have a privacy policy and should not be used.
What's It About?
To play TOCA MYSTERY HOUSE, tap the play icon and swipe the screen to view all areas of the room you've entered. Tap an object that interests you: doors, clocks, eyes, windows, anything that catches your eye. Tap the elevator button and tap to walk in, and pull the lever to go down. Tap the door to open. See what surprise (such as a disembodied disco dancer) is there! Tap the door to close and go to another floor. Exit the elevator and explore another room, like the kitchen. By tapping and swiping, you can make potions to feed and change monsters, vacuum messy things inside the refrigerator, go down stairwells, solve puzzles for aliens, and more.
Is It Any Good?
Familiar free play is aged up in this spooky exploration app. Toca Mystery House continues the free play and fun characters for which Toca Boca is known, but it has a darker vibe than other Toca apps. It may require a few play sessions before many kids will feel like they know their way around this dark, cavernous house. (Hint: There's a map on the wall as you enter the house.) Then they can start digging into the fun "what does this do?" exploratory features that are more science, less spook. Some of the rooms offer a really rich -- and seemingly endless -- set of "puzzles," though there's not always a set logic to them. It's less about figuring things out than poking around and trying things. The alien area (up the disappearing stairs) will be particularly rewarding -- or frustrating -- for kids as they try things, so linear-minded kids looking for concrete solutions may feel stymied. If you encourage kids to slow down, spend time on those features, and not expect clear rules, they're likely to find a much more rewarding play experience.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Toca Mystery House uses darkness, colors, and sounds to create a spooky mood. How do the lighting, music, and little details make you feel a certain way?
Encourage your kid to slow down and spend time on the more creative, experiment-based features of Toca Mystery House. What happens when you tap in different places? What about tapping and holding?
If this app is too spooky for your kid, check out other Toca apps on our Best Toca Boca apps list.
App Details
- Devices : iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Android , Kindle Fire
- Skills : Thinking & Reasoning : decision-making , prediction , solving puzzles
- Pricing structure : Paid
- Release date : June 16, 2018
- Genre : Education
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic )
- Publisher : Toca Boca
- Version : 1.0.2
- Minimum software requirements : iOS 8.0 or later; Android 4.4 and up
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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