The Game Baby Steps Includes Among the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Encountered in Gaming

I've dealt with some difficult decisions in gaming. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence made me set down my controller for several minutes while I thought through my options. I am accountable for numerous Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what could be the hardest choice I’ve had to make in a video game — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the recent title from the makers of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a selection-based adventure. At least not in the conventional way. You only need to walk around a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can barely stand on his unsteady feet. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its deceptively impactful story that will sneak up on you when you least anticipate it. There’s no moment that showcases that quality like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is necessary here. Baby Steps starts when the protagonist is suddenly taken from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He quickly discovers that moving around in it is a difficulty, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have weakened his muscles. The slapstick elements of it all comes from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has trouble voicing that to others. Throughout his hero’s journey, he comes in contact with a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to help him out. A cool, confident hiker attempts to offer Nate a guide, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he plunges into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he requires no assistance and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. During the narrative, you experience no shortage of frustrating vignettes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s not confident enough to accept any assistance.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps’s key situation of selection. As Nate gets close to finishing his adventure, he discovers 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 ways up. If he’s up for a challenge, he can choose a very lengthy and risky path called The Challenge. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps game has to offer; choosing it looks risky to any person.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a gigantic spiral staircase as an alternative and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The single stipulation? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Lord” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Difficult Selection

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an agonizing choice in context. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in a single ridiculous instant. Part of Nate’s journey is centered around the fact that he’s self-conscious of his body and his masculinity. Whenever he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a difficult memory of everything he’s not. Attempting The Obstacle could be a instance where he can show that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that route is sure to be laden with more humiliating failures. Is it worth struggling just to make a statement?

The stairs, on the contrary, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to either accept or reject help. The user doesn't get to decide in about they decline guidance, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about making you feel paranoid each time you find a gift horse. The environment includes design traps that turn a safe route into a difficulty on a dime. Could the steps one more trick? Could Nate reach all the way to the top just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished once again by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Either one brings about a authentic instance of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you decide to take on The Challenge, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate eventually obtains a chance to prove that he’s as capable as everyone else, consciously choosing a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s challenging, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the moment of strength that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the stairs too. To select that route is to finally allow Nate to receive assistance. And when he accomplishes that, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback awaiting him. The steps are not a joke. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he doesn’t slide completely down if he stumbles. It’s a simple climb after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the hiker who has, naturally, opted for The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can see that he’s fatigued, subtly ruing the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to fulfill his obligation, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so unpleasant. Who has concern for humiliation by this odd character?

Personal Reflection

In my playthrough, I selected the steps. Part of me just {wanted to call