The Game Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Meaningful Decisions I Have Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've encountered some difficult choices in gaming. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima concluding moments made me set down my controller for several minutes while I weighed my alternatives. I am accountable for countless Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I regret deeply. None of those moments compare to what now might be the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in a video game — and it involves a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the developers of Ape Out game, is hardly a selection-based adventure. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You must explore a expansive environment as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his wobbly legs. It appears to be one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its surprisingly deep narrative that will sneak up on you when it's most unexpected. There’s no moment that showcases that quality like a key selection that I keep reflecting on.

Spoiler Warning

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps starts when the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a struggle, as a long time spent as a sedentary person have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all stems from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has trouble voicing that to anyone. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to help him out. A cool, confident hiker seeks to provide Nate a navigation aid, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he falls into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he tries to play it off like he can manage alone and genuinely desires to be confined in the cavity. As the plot unfolds, you encounter plenty of frustrating vignettes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too insecure to accept any assistance.

The Ultimate Choice

Everything builds up in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of decision. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he realizes that he must reach the summit of a frosty elevation. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) comes to let him know that there are two ways up. If he’s up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and dangerous hiking trail called The Obstacle. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps game has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and reach the summit in a few minutes. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Lord” from now on if he takes the easy route.

An Agonizing Decision

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an painful decision in context. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself coming to a head in a single ridiculous instant. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the truth that he’s unconfident of his body and his masculinity. Each instance he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a difficult memory of all he lacks. Taking on The Challenge could be a instance where he can prove that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that path is likely filled with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit suffering just to prove a point?

The stairs, on the flip side, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can opt to provide Nate with respite and opt for the steps. It might seem like an simple decision, but Baby Steps is exceptionally cunning about creating doubt whenever you see a simple solution. The environment includes planned obstacles that turn a safe route into a setback instantly. Could the steps an additional deception? Might Nate arrive to the very summit just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated yet again by being made to address a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Either one leads to a real situation of character development and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an personal triumph. Nate at last receives a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as others, voluntarily accepting a challenging way rather than enduring one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s difficult, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the moment of strength that he requires.

But there’s no disgrace in the staircase too. To choose that path is to finally allow Nate to take support. And when he does so, 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 easy to walk up and he doesn’t slide to the bottom if he trips. It’s a simple climb after hours of struggle. Partway through, he even has a chat with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, opted for The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s worn out, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to pay his debt, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this odd character?

My Choice

During my game, I selected the steps. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call