We went through the same thing! We looked at Gorilla, Woodland, Rainbow, and American Sale. We were really having a hard time justifying the pricier ones until we were able to see them all in person. You can feel the difference and the thickness/sturdiness of the wood is different. We wanted to be able to play on it with our kids and Rainbow and Woodland seemed to be the only brands that we thought would hold up the best over the years. We went with Rainbow and have loved it so far.