Wiltopia Research Tower with Compass Playmobil Review

Over the last few weeks, my 4 year old Lincoln has been diving back into the world of Playmobil, checking out the various sets we’ve purchased and received in the past, and taking a few new review sets for a spin. While he does love all of his Playmobil, a few sets are standing out to him recently. They all belong to the Wiltopia line. We’ve had the pleasure of looking at both the Animal Care Station and the Anteater Care sets, and now we are moving onto something new: the Research Tower with Compass set. Let’s check it out!

Here is a bit from Playmobil on what to expect with the Wiltopia Research Tower with Compass set:

Discover the best views of the jungle from the top of the Research Tower with Compass. The multi-level tower includes rotating platform at the top, allowing for a complete 360-degree view, while the functional compass in the roof offers a real-life valuable tool for budding explorers. Adventurers can also experience the jungle wildlife up close and personally, as the tower also serves as a shelter for howler monkeys who have made a home for themselves in the surrounding trees and vines. Using the enclosed collectible animal card with the Wiltopia app, kids can learn all about the animals and their habitats and even take a selfie with them by projecting the animals right into their home via AR. With Wiltopia – PLAYMOBIL’s eco-friendly product line consisting of, on average, more than 80% sustainable materials – children can embark on adventures to vibrant regions around the world, encouraging an appreciation for the wildlife that lives there and our planet as a whole. Play with this set on its own or combine it with the rest of the Wiltopia theme (#71048-71074, 71007-71012 – sold separately) for even more wild, animal fun!

A Better Structure Than the Animal Care Station

If you read through the Animal Care Station review we did late last year, you’ll remember that I wasn’t a huge fan of how that set went together. Because the house was built on stilts to allow animals roam freely beneath, it wasn’t as sturdy as I would have liked, and even the smallest shifts in movement would snap the supports off the base of the house, causing the house to collapse. While the set as a whole was really great, this one setback really did sour our time with it, to a point where we stopped using the supports all together when we played.

The Research Tower comes with its own baseplate that the tower itself is built on. While it does use supports, they click in nicely to the base, providing a very secure base for the tower top to connect to. This made playing with the set much more enjoyable. As you can imagine, 4 year old’s aren’t the most careful souls on the planet, and the tower itself took a fair bit of knocks from swinging arms and legs. In direct contrast to when I built the Animal Care Station, I wasn’t summoned every 10-15 minutes to fix something that had broken off. Everything is so secure here, which makes this one of the better Playmobil builds I’ve ever had to do.

So Many Aniamls!

The main draw to the Wiitopia lineup for Lincoln are all the animals you can collect and play with. We have a few from other sets that get a lot of play, but the Research Tower took it to a whole new level! The central focus of course are the two monkeys and the large Cayman, but the there were almost a dozen little other animals as well, including humming birds, turtles, a snake, and more. Each animal worked well with the set, and all the Wiltopia sets, and will provide hours of entertainment for my kids. It’s hard to even call my board game table a board game table anymore – it’s full of Wiltopia Playmobil, and I’m not sure I’ll get it back any time soon.

A Fantastic Set

Overall, the Research Tower is a fantastic set, and although it might not be as visually impressive as the Animal Care Station, it is a much better build in almost every way. The variety of animals also make it a great set to buy, and a central focus for any kids imagination. While some of these Wiltopia sets come with a slightly hefty price tag, I always find the quality to be more than worth it. That is once again the case here. The level of detail on the animals is fantastic, and there are enough figures to allow multiple kids to play at one time. Of all the Wiltopia sets we have looked at so far, this is easily the one I would recommend the most. It has a great balance of quality and playability that might be unmatched in kids toy space right now.