The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Significant Choices I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've faced some difficult choices in video games. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence led me to set down my controller for a good 10 minutes while I weighed my alternatives. I am responsible for so many Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations compare to what possibly is the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in a video game — and it concerns a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out game, is not really a decision-focused experience. At least not in typical gaming terms. You only need to navigate a expansive environment as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can struggle to remain on his unsteady feet. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its surprisingly deep narrative that will surprise you when it's most unexpected. There’s no moment that showcases that quality like one major choice that remains on my mind.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is necessary here. Baby Steps begins as Nate is magically whisked away from the basement of his home and into a fantasy world. He quickly discovers that walking through it is a struggle, as a long time spent as a inactive individual have deteriorated his physical condition. The humorous physicality of it all comes from players controlling Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. Throughout his hero’s journey, he meets a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to help him out. A composed outdoorsman seeks to provide Nate a navigation aid, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he plunges into an trapping cavity and is offered a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he requires no assistance and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. Throughout the story, you see numerous frustrating vignettes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too self-conscious to accept any assistance.

The Pivotal Moment

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of selection. As Nate nears the end his adventure, he discovers that he must reach the summit of a snow-capped peak. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) comes to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can opt for a particularly extended and dangerous hiking trail dubbed The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game includes; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a gigantic spiral staircase instead and get to the top in a short time. The sole condition? He’ll have to address the guardian “Master” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Difficult Selection

I am very serious when I say that this is an difficult selection in context. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is focused on the truth that he’s self-conscious of his body and his masculinity. Each instance he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a hard reminder of all he lacks. Undertaking The Obstacle could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as able as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be paved with more humiliating failures. Is it justified struggling just to make a statement?

The staircase, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to choose whether to take assistance or not. The user doesn't get to decide in if they reject navigation help, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It might seem like an easy choice, but Baby Steps game is devilishly clever about creating doubt each time you find a gift horse. The world is filled with intentional pitfalls that turn a safe route into a difficulty suddenly. Is the staircase one more trick? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be disappointed by some last-second gag? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished yet again by being made to address an odd character as Lord?

No Perfect Choice

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Either one brings about a genuine moment of personal growth and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a chance to prove that he’s as competent as others, willingly taking on a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s hard, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the moment of strength that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the steps too. To opt for that way is to at last permit Nate to take support. And when he accomplishes that, he finds that there’s no hidden trick waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he does not fall completely down if he stumbles. It’s a easy journey after extended challenges. Partway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, of course, chosen to take The Obstacle. He strives to appear composed, but you can tell that he’s worn out, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has concern for humiliation by this freak?

My Choice

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