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Playmobil fits the bill as well. When I was a kid Playmobil and Lego were similarly popular and it was only much later that I learned that Lego is known everyw

Playmobil fits the bill as well. When I was a kid Playmobil and Lego were similarly popular and it was only much later that I learned that Lego is known everywhere but Playmobil is not. Playmobil is not as versatile as Lego but in my experience it is much better suited for outdoor play. A more hidden champion is Ankersteine. I have one of their construction kits which is in my family probably since around 1885 and these kits are still produced today.

SushiHippie 2y ago
There is also fischertechnik, how popular is it outside of Germany? https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fischertechnik https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fischertechnik
- qurashee 2y ago
  Not a good sample but I've lived in three European countries with my kids and I've never come across them before.
- weinzierl 2y ago
  How could I forget to mention fischertechnik. It was the third member of the three most popular toys in my childhood, next to Playmobil and Lego. Other than Playmobil and Lego I have not seen toy fischertechnik for years, but I occasionally recognize their non-toy fixings. Fischer was the most prolific German inventor with 570 patents, who amongst other things invented the plastic wall plug.
- ralfd 2y ago
  The company website is almost a parody of the stereotype of serious German-ness. It is not a toy, no it is a serious learning material, so you can buy a 10000 Euro set to understand how an integrated factory is working: https://www.fischertechnik.de/de-de/produkte/industrie-und-hochschulen https://www.fischertechnik.de/de-de/produkte/industrie-und-h... There is a „toy“ section for children, but it is to learn about electricity or renewable energy, and I think the real customer of the page are not the depicted children, but the papa with an engineering degree.
fastasucan 2y ago
Wonder if that follows germanic languages. "Playmo" is well known in Norway.
- homarp 2y ago
  Playmobil also well known in France and Spain https://www.playmobil.com/es-es/ https://www.playmobil.com/es-es/ https://www.playmobil.com/fr-fr/ https://www.playmobil.com/fr-fr/ and based on the dropdown at the bottom, quite a lot more countries
Slartie 2y ago
Playmobil has a horrible number of super-small parts that'll go missing really quick when taken outside. Lego has these, too, of course, but with Lego you at least have the benefit of being able to infinitely combine these parts to build stuff from them. Playmobil is "dumb" in that regard, you can't combine anything except in those ways in which it was specifically designed to be combined. The real alternative to Lego in my opinion is Duplo, from the same manufacturer. They have no really small parts at all, so these are really good for outside play. But still infinitely combinable.
- smartmic 2y ago
  There is also Playmobil Junior [1] for toddlers - also no small parts and really robust. They also have very nice water and bathtub toys for indoors and outdoors. [1] https://www.playmobil.com/en-us/content/junior_themepage/junior_themepage.html https://www.playmobil.com/en-us/content/junior_themepage/jun...
wjnc 2y ago
Ankersteine is very beautiful. Thanks for the tip. I think I would enjoy that myself. The bigger boxes are 16+ in age! I would probably struggle. And this on the day that 'Sinterklaas' leaves.

SushiHippie 2y ago

There is also fischertechnik, how popular is it outside of Germany? https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fischertechnik https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fischertechnik

qurashee 2y ago
Not a good sample but I've lived in three European countries with my kids and I've never come across them before.
weinzierl 2y ago
How could I forget to mention fischertechnik. It was the third member of the three most popular toys in my childhood, next to Playmobil and Lego. Other than Playmobil and Lego I have not seen toy fischertechnik for years, but I occasionally recognize their non-toy fixings. Fischer was the most prolific German inventor with 570 patents, who amongst other things invented the plastic wall plug.
ralfd 2y ago
The company website is almost a parody of the stereotype of serious German-ness. It is not a toy, no it is a serious learning material, so you can buy a 10000 Euro set to understand how an integrated factory is working: https://www.fischertechnik.de/de-de/produkte/industrie-und-hochschulen https://www.fischertechnik.de/de-de/produkte/industrie-und-h... There is a „toy“ section for children, but it is to learn about electricity or renewable energy, and I think the real customer of the page are not the depicted children, but the papa with an engineering degree.

fastasucan 2y ago

Wonder if that follows germanic languages. "Playmo" is well known in Norway.

homarp 2y ago
Playmobil also well known in France and Spain https://www.playmobil.com/es-es/ https://www.playmobil.com/es-es/ https://www.playmobil.com/fr-fr/ https://www.playmobil.com/fr-fr/ and based on the dropdown at the bottom, quite a lot more countries

Slartie 2y ago

Playmobil has a horrible number of super-small parts that'll go missing really quick when taken outside. Lego has these, too, of course, but with Lego you at least have the benefit of being able to infinitely combine these parts to build stuff from them. Playmobil is "dumb" in that regard, you can't combine anything except in those ways in which it was specifically designed to be combined. The real alternative to Lego in my opinion is Duplo, from the same manufacturer. They have no really small parts at all, so these are really good for outside play. But still infinitely combinable.

smartmic 2y ago
There is also Playmobil Junior [1] for toddlers - also no small parts and really robust. They also have very nice water and bathtub toys for indoors and outdoors. [1] https://www.playmobil.com/en-us/content/junior_themepage/junior_themepage.html https://www.playmobil.com/en-us/content/junior_themepage/jun...

wjnc 2y ago

Ankersteine is very beautiful. Thanks for the tip. I think I would enjoy that myself. The bigger boxes are 16+ in age! I would probably struggle. And this on the day that 'Sinterklaas' leaves.