The Game Baby Steps Includes Among the Most Impactful Choices I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've encountered some hard decisions in video games. Several of my selections in Life is Strange continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence led me to put my controller down for a good 10 minutes while I thought through my choices. I am responsible for numerous Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I regret deeply. Not a single one of those situations compare to what possibly is the hardest choice I’ve had to make in gaming — and it involves a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the newest release from the creators of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a choice-driven game. Definitely not in the conventional way. You must walk around a expansive environment as Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his shaky limbs. It looks like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like a key selection that I keep reflecting on.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

A bit of context is necessary here. Baby Steps starts when Nate is transported from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a difficulty, as a long time spent as a couch potato have deteriorated his physical condition. The slapstick elements of it all stems from gamers directing Nate gradually, trying to prevent him from falling over.

Nate needs help, but he has trouble voicing that to other characters. 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 map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he doesn’t need the help and genuinely desires to be confined in the cavity. Throughout the story, you encounter plenty of annoying scenarios where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps’s key situation of decision. As Nate gets close to finishing his quest, he finds that he must climb to the top of a snowy mountain. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) shows up to inform him that there are two ways up. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can opt for a particularly extended and dangerous hiking trail named The Challenge. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can merely climb a massive winding stairs as an alternative and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The only caveat? He’ll have to address the guardian “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an agonizing choice in this situation. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself culminating in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is focused on the truth that he’s insecure of his physique and male identity. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a hard reminder of what he fails to be. Taking on The Obstacle could be a time where he can demonstrate that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that road is bound to be paved with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it justified striving just to make a statement?

The steps, on the flip side, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The player has no choice in whether or not they reject navigation help, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and take the stairs. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt anytime you see a simple solution. The world is filled with design traps that change a secure way into a setback instantly. Could the steps an additional deception? Might Nate arrive at the peak just to be disappointed by an ending prank? And more concerning, 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 perfect selection. Both options brings about a authentic instance of personal growth and catharsis for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as able as others, willingly taking on a challenging way rather than suffering through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s challenging, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the steps either. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to take support. And when he does, he finds that there’s no real catch waiting for him. The staircase is not a trick. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he doesn’t slide completely down if he trips. It’s a straightforward ascent after lengthy difficulty. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the outdoorsman who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Obstacle. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s worn out, quietly regretting the needless difficulty. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to fulfill his obligation, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has energy for shame by this strange individual?

My Choice

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