The announcement of Hollow Knight: Silksong’s release date has created a ripple effect in the indie game community. With the game launching on such short notice – next week, on September 4 – several indie titles that were slated to release on or near that date are collectively jumping out of its blast radius to avoid being overshadowed. Devolver Digital’s Baby Steps joins this list.
The upcoming physics-based walking adventure by the creators of Ape Out and Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy was set to launch on September. 8. Although it wouldn’t have arrived until one week after Silksong, publisher Devolver Digital isn’t taking chances and has delayed Baby Steps to September 23. The game, first announced in 2023, follows an “unemployed loser” named Nate who takes his literal first steps into a fantastical world. Players must master the physics-based walking to awkwardly/humorously traverse environments.
“Nate, the wary, onesie-donned failson at the heart of the eccentric adventure in literal walking simulator Baby Steps, has stumbled after attempting to ascend his greatest challenge yet: launching the week after Hollow Knight: Silksong’s surprise release date,” reads Devolver’s press release.
A cute trailer announcing the new release date shows Nate awkwardly climbing atop a giant model of Hornet, the protagonist of Silksong. When Baby Steps launches, it will be available on PlayStation 5 and PC.
Baby Steps isn’t alone. Yesterday, publisher Ysbryd Games delayed its tactical RPG Demonschool from September 3 to November 19. The Early Access cozy sim title Little Witch in the Woods, which pushed its long-awaited 1.0 launch from September 4 to September 15.
Indie Metroidvania Aeterna Lucas was also planned to release this month, and is now delayed all the way into next year. Retro RPG Faeland was set to launch out of Early Access on September 9, but this has been postponed to a yet-to-be-determined date. CloverPit, a roguelite slot machine game, had its launch moved to September 26 from its original September 3 date. All of these delay announcements specifically cite Hollow Knight: Silksong as the primary culprit.
This phenomenon will likely continue, as there are still plenty of smaller titles launching well within Silksong’s blast radius. Titles like Jetrunner, Atari’s Adventure of Samsara, Deep Silver’s Metal Eden, and Bandai Namco’s Hirogami are just a few titles arriving right alongside Team Cherry’s hotly anticipated sequel. It wouldn’t surprise me if these developers are having difficult conversations about whether it’s wise, or even financially feasible, to delay their titles or to weather the storm and hope for the best.
