The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Significant Choices I Have Ever Encountered in Gaming

I've dealt with some challenging decisions in video games. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima concluding moments made me set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my options. I am the cause of so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. None of those moments compare to what possibly is the hardest choice I’ve had to make in interactive media — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a selection-based adventure. Certainly not in the conventional way. You only need to explore a sprawling open world as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his unsteady feet. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s power lies in its deceptively impactful story that will sneak up on you when you’re least expecting it. There’s no situation that exemplifies that strength like a pivotal decision that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some scene setting is necessary here. Baby Steps begins as Nate is magically whisked away from his family's basement and into a fantasy world. He quickly discovers that navigating this world is a struggle, as a long time spent as a couch potato have atrophied his limbs. The humorous physicality of it all stems from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate requires assistance, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. Throughout his hero’s journey, he meets a collection of quirky personalities in the world who all offer to assist him. A self-assured trekker tries to give Nate a navigation aid, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he can manage alone and actually wants to be confined in the cavity. As the plot unfolds, you experience no shortage of irritating episodes where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s not confident enough to receive help.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of decision. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he realizes that he must reach the summit of a snowy mountain. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to inform him that there are two paths upward. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can choose a very lengthy and hazardous route named The Obstacle. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game has to offer; choosing it looks risky to any human.

But there’s a second option: He can just walk up a enormous coiled steps in its place and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Sir” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Difficult Selection

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an painful decision in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself coming to a head in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is revolves around the reality that he’s insecure of his body and his masculinity. Every time he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of everything he’s not. Attempting The Challenge could be a instance where he can prove that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that route is sure to be filled with more awkward mishaps. Does it merit striving just to prove a point?

The steps, on the contrary, give Nate another big moment to either accept or reject help. The player has no choice in if they reject navigation help, but they can opt to give Nate a break and take the stairs. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about causing suspicion anytime you encounter an easy option. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that change a secure way into a difficulty instantly. Is the staircase yet another trap? Will Nate get to the very summit just to be let down by some last-second gag? And more concerning, is he ready to be diminished another time by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Each path brings about a genuine moment of character development and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as capable as others, voluntarily accepting a difficult route rather than struggling through one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s difficult, and possibly risky, but it’s the moment of strength that he craves.

But there’s no disgrace in the staircase too. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to accept help. And when he does, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The staircase is not a trick. They go on for a long time, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he does not fall completely down if he falls. It’s a easy journey after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a discussion with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this freak?

My Choice

When I played, I chose the staircase. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call