Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Impactful Choices I Have Ever Faced in Video Games

I've encountered some challenging decisions in video games. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section led me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I weighed my alternatives. I am the cause of numerous Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. Not one of those instances hold a candle to what possibly is the toughest selection I've ever made in gaming — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out, is hardly a choice-driven game. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You must walk around a vast game world as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It appears to be a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s strength comes from its deceptively impactful story that will surprise you when it's most unexpected. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some scene setting is needed at this point. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is transported from his family's basement and into a magical realm. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a struggle, as years spent as a sedentary person have deteriorated his physical condition. The slapstick elements of it all arises from gamers directing Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has trouble voicing that to other characters. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a cast of eccentric characters in the world who everyone tries to give him a hand. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a guide, but he clumsily declines in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he falls into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he doesn’t need the help and genuinely desires 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 too self-conscious to accept any assistance.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he realizes that he must climb to the top of a frosty elevation. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two paths upward. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can choose a very lengthy and hazardous route named The Manbreaker. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game has to offer; choosing it looks risky to any human.

But there’s a other possibility: He can merely climb a gigantic spiral staircase as an alternative and arrive at the peak in a short time. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

An Agonizing Decision

I am very serious when I say that this is an agonizing choice in this situation. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is focused on the truth that he’s self-conscious of his physical appearance and manhood. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a difficult memory of what he fails to be. Taking on The Challenge could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as able as his imagined opponent, but that route is sure to be filled with more awkward mishaps. Does it merit suffering just to prove a point?

The steps, on the other hand, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to either accept or reject help. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they decline guidance, but they can opt to give Nate a break and opt for the steps. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about making you feel paranoid whenever you encounter an easy option. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that change a secure way into a obstacle on a dime. Are the stairs yet another trap? Could Nate reach all the way to the top just to be let down by a final joke? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being compelled to refer to an odd character as Lord?

No Correct Answer

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no perfect selection. Each path results in a authentic instance of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a moment to show that he’s as able as anyone else, consciously choosing a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s challenging, and possibly risky, but it’s the dose of confidence that he craves.

But there’s no disgrace in the staircase either. To select that route is to finally allow Nate to take support. And when he does so, he discovers that there’s no real catch awaiting him. The steps are not a joke. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he does not fall completely down if he falls. It’s a simple climb after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the hiker who has, naturally, selected The Challenge. He tries to play it cool, but you can see that he’s worn out, silently lamenting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the agreement barely appears so bad. Who has time to be embarrassed by this odd character?

My Experience

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