Baby Steps Reviews

Nate probably needed a bit of a wake up call, a nudge or a hefty shove to get him out of his parent’s basement, out of his onesie and into some proper clothes, and out into the real world, but Baby Steps teleporting him out to a strange world without giving him shoes or any kind of survival gear is probably a bit much. Heck, he might actually be in need of physical therapy to relearn how to walk.

Baby Steps won’t click with everyone, but if you have the patience, it delivers one of the most memorable and oddly inspiring platformers in years. Every laugh comes with frustration, every fall makes the next step sweeter, and the whole thing somehow feels worth it. It’s clumsy and challenging, but also one of the most charmingly human games you’ll play this generation.

Part physics-based, slapstick open world walking sim, part satire of the worst parts of modern gaming, Baby Steps is a stumblecore banger that only those with a penchant for punishment and hyper-realistic donkey dicks will manage.

If the name Bennett Foddy stirs a reaction in you, be it excitement, rage or fear, you’ll already know if Baby Steps is your kind of game. Foddy is the master of melding jank physics and overwrought control systems into the kinds of challenging (nee frustrating) experiences that provide an unmatched level of satisfaction once mastered, most notably with QWOP and Getting Over It. Baby Steps is the final form of the “Foddy Game”; an open world exploration of just how far you can take a me...

Baby Steps would be a very easy game to dislike.

Baby Steps will make you laugh and cry while also somewhat motivating you to never give up. This daring new take on a 3D walking simulator might just be the most bizarre 2025 gaming subversion we've seen yet.

From the creators who brought you QWOP and Getting Over It, comes a new adventure where every step brings you victory, and every fall a lesson in humility. It might be perhaps the strangest game you’ll play all year, but it’s also one of the most brilliant.

I tried hard to be in on the joke of Baby Steps for the first hour, but it lost me insanely quickly. The thing is, I don't think it even cares. The QWOP-iness of the movement actually is well-done, and there are some moments of absurdity that worked for me. It then just shifts too far from a stupid but fair rage game, to a stupid but cheap-feeling rage game with no redeeming qualities. You'll painfully wander aimlessly for hours. You'll cringe hard at the "humor" that gets way too gratuitous, gross, and vulgar completely unjustifiably. This becomes a mostly mean-spirited game that even wants to drive you insane with the soundtrack. Laugh and watch someone else experience it if you want to, but do not play it yourself.

Hilarious, bittersweet, surreal and rage-inducing all in equal measure, Baby Steps is a journey that you'll want to join Nate on.

Baby Steps walks a fine line between frustration and accomplishment to provide a walking simulator and climbing experience quite unlike anything else.

Brutally frustrating, exasperating, and exhilarating, Baby Steps is a journey befitting the legacy of its creators. While the humor may be a bit too crass for some, there’s a surprisingly poignant narrative wrapped around a fairy tale in the bizarre, uncomfortable world Nate finds himself…and a constant reminder to get back up every time you fall, to continue putting one foot in front of the other. Hooroo.

I spent the majority of my time reviewing Baby Steps in various states of anger, ranging from mild annoyance to controller-throwing rage, but when it intends to make me feel this way, it’s hard to deny that Baby Steps is effective. “Ragebait” games like this one are supposed to elicit that response. I appreciate how Baby Steps commits to the bit by making the player the brunt of the joke, along with its surreal story. Still, its frustrating difficulty, paired with occasionally poorly de...

The year is 2008. An Australian man working at the University of Oxford, who used to play bass for the synthpop band Cut Copy, releases a little browser game, developed whilst procrastinating from finishing his dissertation in philosophy. That man is Bennett Foddy, and the game in question is QWOP, an utterly frustrating, but oddly engaging, “sports simulator”. In it, you have to press the Q, W, O and P keys on the keyboard to move the thighs and calves of an athlete running a race until ...

Challenging you to make your way up a mountain, Baby Steps is likely to be one of the most divisive games of the year. With its hands-off approach, you're left to find your own fun as you ascend, and struggle with the simple act of walking. Ultimately, it just feels a little too aimless and punishing for its own good.

Baby Steps features a simple premise that appears tedious but blossoms into one of the most unique experiences I've had in recent months. It is both bizarre and touching, requiring considerable patience.

A Sisyphean challenge after which you'll never take pressing W to walk for granted again.

As I pushed my way through Baby Steps over 11 or so of god’s own hours, I asked myself a few questions. What does it mean to feel accomplished in a game? What value is there in pushing beyond one’s own perceived limits for the sake of finishing something? Can one continuous joke still be funny eight hours later? Does the presence of a metaphor elevate a story? I’ve sat down to write this review but I don’t think I have answers to everything here yet. Such is the outcome of staring far too long at a game about a jiggling neckbeard pushing his way up a mountain like a brainrot-infused adaptation of Sisyphus.

Somehow, Baby Steps is the strangest walking simulator this year.

Baby Steps has a simple premise, but a lot of depth. You’re pushed to be patient and persistent by the mechanics. In fact, the whole game is built around punishing you for being foolish or hasty. Every character is begging you to relax, take in the scenery, and have a good time. If you listen, you just might enjoy yourself. But make no mistake, this game can be crazy frustrating. Tiny mistakes can lead to gigantic consequences, after all. If you’re patient enough to master the deranged control scheme, you’ll be shocked by what you can accomplish in Baby Steps.

Baby Steps is an infuriating ordeal of intentionally awkward physics that’s brutal, unbelievably stupid, and downright awesome.

Baby Steps, no pun intended, seems like a step backwards for Bennett Foddy and team. Losing the battle between fun and frustrating, frustrating and annoying, always wins when it comes to Baby Steps.