Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Encountered in a Game

I've encountered some hard choices in gaming. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's concluding moments led me to pause the game for around ten minutes while I thought through my alternatives. I am responsible for so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I regret deeply. Not a single one of those situations compare to what now might be the toughest selection I’ve had to make in interactive media — and it concerns a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the newest release from the makers of Ape Out game, is not really a decision-focused experience. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You only need to explore a vast game world as Nate, a adult in a onesie who can struggle to remain on his unsteady feet. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in its surprisingly deep narrative that will sneak up on you when it's most unexpected. There’s no moment that demonstrates that power like a pivotal decision that I keep reflecting on.

Alert: Spoilers

Some background information is required here. Baby Steps game starts when the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that walking through it is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a inactive individual have weakened his muscles. The slapstick elements of it all arises from players controlling Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has trouble voicing that to other characters. As he progresses, he meets a cast of eccentric characters in the world who everyone tries to help him out. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he falls into an unavoidable hole and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he doesn’t need the help and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. As the plot unfolds, you see numerous frustrating vignettes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s not confident enough to accept any assistance.

The Pivotal Moment

Everything builds up in Baby Steps game’s key situation of decision. As Nate approaches the conclusion his adventure, he discovers that he must ascend of a snowy mountain. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) comes to inform him that there are two routes to the top. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can take an extremely long and risky path called The Challenge. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game includes; attempting it appears unwise to anyone.

But there’s a second option: He can just walk up a enormous coiled steps instead and arrive at the peak in a short time. The only caveat? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Difficult Selection

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an agonizing choice in context. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself reaching a climax in a single ridiculous instant. An element of Nate's story is revolves around the fact that he’s insecure of his body and his masculinity. Each instance he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a difficult memory of what he fails to be. Attempting The Obstacle could be a instance where he can show that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that route is sure to be paved with more humiliating failures. Does it merit struggling just to make a statement?

The staircase, on the flip side, give Nate another big moment to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The user doesn't get to decide in about they reject navigation help, but they can opt to give Nate a break and choose the staircase. It might seem like an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about causing suspicion anytime you find a gift horse. The environment includes planned obstacles that transform an easy path into a obstacle suddenly. Could the steps yet another trap? Will Nate get all the way to the top just to be let down by a final joke? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated another time by being made to address some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Both options leads to a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and emotional release for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a chance to prove that he’s as capable as others, willingly taking on a challenging way rather than suffering through one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he craves.

But there’s no embarrassment in the steps either. To select that route is to finally allow Nate to receive assistance. And when he accomplishes that, he realizes that there’s no hidden trick in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he doesn’t slide all the way down if he falls. It’s a straightforward ascent after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the hiker who has, unsurprisingly, selected The Manbreaker. He tries to play it cool, but you can discern that he’s worn out, quietly regretting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, addressing his new Master, the arrangement scarcely looks so bad. Who has concern for humiliation by this strange individual?

My Choice

In my playthrough, I selected the steps. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call