Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Impactful Choices I've Ever Experienced in a Game

I've encountered some hard decisions in video games. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence prompted me to put my controller down for a good 10 minutes while I thought through my options. I am the cause of countless Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I regret deeply. Not one of those instances hold a candle to what could be the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in gaming — and it concerns a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out, isn’t exactly a choice-driven game. At least not in the conventional way. You simply have to explore a expansive environment as the main character Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s power lies in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when you’re least expecting it. There’s not a single instance that exemplifies that strength like a pivotal decision that I keep reflecting on.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is magically whisked away from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that navigating this world is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have weakened his muscles. The humorous physicality of it all comes from gamers directing Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate requires assistance, but he has difficulty expressing that to others. During his adventure, he meets a collection of quirky personalities in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A composed outdoorsman attempts to offer Nate a guide, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s funniest instant. When he falls into an trapping cavity and is offered a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he doesn’t need the help and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. During the narrative, you experience no shortage of frustrating vignettes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s not confident enough to accept any assistance.

The Ultimate Choice

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he discovers that he must ascend of a frosty elevation. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) comes to tell him 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 Manbreaker. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps has to offer; choosing it looks risky to any person.

But there’s a other possibility: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs instead and arrive at the peak in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

An Agonizing Decision

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an difficult selection in this situation. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself reaching a climax in one absurd moment. An element of Nate's story is centered around the reality that he’s insecure of his physique and male identity. Every time he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a difficult memory of everything he’s not. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a moment where he can show that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that road is bound to be laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it worth striving just to make a statement?

The stairs, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The player has no choice in whether or not they decline guidance, but they can opt to provide Nate with respite and take the stairs. It should be an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is devilishly clever about causing suspicion whenever you find a gift horse. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that change a secure way into a setback suddenly. Are the stairs an additional deception? Will Nate get to the very summit just to be fooled by a final joke? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished once again by being compelled to refer to an odd character as Lord?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Either one brings about a real situation of character development and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Obstacle, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as others, consciously choosing a challenging way rather than enduring one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s challenging, and possibly risky, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the steps either. To opt for that way is to finally allow Nate to accept help. And when he accomplishes that, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They continue for a while, but they’re simple to climb and he does not fall completely down if he trips. It’s a straightforward ascent after lengthy difficulty. Halfway up, he even has a conversation with the trekker who has, naturally, chosen to take The Challenge. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s fatigued, subtly ruing the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to meet his agreement, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so bad. Who has time to be embarrassed by this strange individual?

My Choice

During my game, I opted for the stairs. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call