The Game Baby Steps Includes One of the Most Significant Choices I Have Ever Encountered in Gaming

I've dealt with some challenging choices in interactive entertainment. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section led me to put my controller down for a good 10 minutes while I considered my choices. I am the cause of numerous Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I wish I could undo. Not a single one of those situations compare to what now might be the toughest selection I’ve had to make in interactive media — and it concerns a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out, is not really a choice-driven game. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You simply have to navigate a sprawling open world as the main character Nate, a adult in a onesie who can barely stand on his wobbly legs. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s power lies in its deceptively impactful story that will sneak up on you when you least anticipate it. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like one major choice that remains on my mind.

Alert: Spoilers

Some scene setting is needed at this point. Baby Steps game begins as Nate is magically whisked away from the basement of his home and into a fantasy world. He quickly discovers that moving around in it is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have atrophied his limbs. The humorous physicality of it all comes from players controlling Nate gradually, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate requires assistance, 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 help him out. A self-assured trekker seeks to provide Nate a navigation aid, but he clumsily declines in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he falls into an trapping cavity and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he can manage alone and actually wants to be trapped in the pit. As the plot unfolds, you see numerous frustrating vignettes where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s not confident enough to accept any assistance.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he realizes that he must ascend of a snowy mountain. The default guardian 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 ready for a test, he can opt for a particularly extended and risky path named The Challenge. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps provides; taking it seems inadvisable to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can simply ascend a enormous coiled steps in its place and arrive at the peak in a short time. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Sir” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Difficult Selection

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an painful decision in the game's narrative. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the fact that he’s unconfident of his body and his masculinity. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a hard reminder of everything he’s not. Attempting The Challenge could be a instance where he can demonstrate that he’s as competent as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it worth suffering just to demonstrate something?

The steps, on the other hand, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The gamer cannot choose in if they reject navigation help, but they can choose to give Nate a break and choose the staircase. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about causing suspicion each time you see a simple solution. The world is filled with design traps that change a secure way into a obstacle on a dime. Could the steps yet another trap? Might Nate arrive at the peak just to be disappointed by a final joke? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated once again by being compelled to refer to a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path brings about a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and emotional release for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as others, voluntarily accepting a difficult route rather than struggling through one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s hard, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the moment of strength that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the stairs either. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to take support. And when he does, he discovers that there’s no hidden trick waiting for him. The staircase is not a trick. They go on for a long time, but they’re easy to walk up and he doesn’t slide completely down if he falls. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, naturally, chosen to take The Challenge. He strives to appear composed, but you can discern that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so bad. Who has energy for shame by this freak?

My Choice

During my game, I opted for the stairs. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call