Children’s apps developer TribePlay has released a series of apps based on its Dr Panda character, with a range of playful scenarios. The latest is Dr Panda’s Toy Cars.

The subject is self-explanatory: it’s all about driving round virtual cities in various vehicles, including a truck, an ambulance and a police car. It’s available for iPhone, iPad and Android.

“Children can drive various types of vehicles while they cruise around two different cities, explore the roads, and get to discover all sorts of hidden surprises,” explains its app store listing.

“Let down the barriers at the railway crossing, or turn on your sirens… who knows what you might find.”

The obvious comparison is to Toca Boca’s excellent Toca Cars, although there’s more emphasis in Dr Panda’s Toy Cars on the different vehicles and the tasks that can be performed with them, while Toca Cars errs more towards the creativity aspect of building a city then knocking it all down again.

What both apps share is an open-ended nature: children can make up their own stories about the characters they’re driving around on-screen.

Dr Panda’s Toy Cars costs £1.49 for iPhone and iPad on Apple’s App Store, and £1.29 for Android on the Google Play store.