Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Faced in Video Games

I've encountered some difficult decisions in gaming. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's ending section led me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I weighed my choices. I am accountable for so many Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. None of those moments hold a candle to what could be the hardest choice I've faced in gaming — and it concerns a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out game, is not really a choice-driven game. Definitely not in typical gaming terms. You only need to explore a vast game world as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his wobbly legs. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its deceptively impactful story that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like a pivotal decision that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

A bit of context is needed at this point. Baby Steps begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that moving around in it is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a sedentary person have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all stems from gamers directing Nate step by step, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to others. Throughout his hero’s journey, he meets a collection of quirky personalities in the world who everyone tries to assist him. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a map, but he clumsily declines in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he drops into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and actually wants to be trapped in the pit. Throughout the story, you see numerous irritating episodes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Defining Decision

Everything builds up in Baby Steps’s one true moment of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he finds that he must ascend of a frosty elevation. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) shows up to inform him that there are two paths upward. If he’s up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and risky path dubbed The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game has to offer; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can merely climb a gigantic spiral staircase instead and get to the top in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Lord” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Difficult Selection

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an agonizing choice in context. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in one absurd moment. An element of Nate's story is centered around the fact that he’s insecure of his physique and male identity. Whenever he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a hard reminder of all he lacks. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a instance where he can prove that he’s as able as his imagined opponent, but that road is bound to be laden with more humiliating failures. Does it merit struggling just to prove a point?

The staircase, on the contrary, give Nate another big moment to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can decide to provide Nate with respite and take the stairs. It ought to be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about creating doubt each time you encounter an easy option. The world is filled with design traps that transform an easy path into a obstacle suddenly. Is the staircase one more trick? Might Nate arrive all the way to the top just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being compelled to refer to some weirdo Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Both options results in a authentic instance of protagonist evolution and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Challenge, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as anyone else, voluntarily accepting a tough path rather than enduring one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he needs.

But there’s no shame in the staircase too. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to take support. And when he does, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The steps are not a joke. They continue for a while, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he won't slip all the way down if he falls. It’s a easy journey after hours of struggle. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, opted for The Challenge. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, addressing his new Master, the arrangement scarcely looks so unpleasant. Who has time to be embarrassed by this freak?

My Experience

During my game, I selected the steps. Part of me just {wanted to call