The Game Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Meaningful Decisions I've Ever Encountered in Video Games

I've dealt with some hard choices in gaming. Several of my selections in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence made me pause the game for a good 10 minutes while I weighed my choices. I am responsible for so many Krogan demises in the Mass Effect series that I would love to reverse. None of those moments compare to what could be the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in a video game — and it has to do with a enormous set of steps.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the makers of Ape Out game, is not really a choice-driven game. Certainly not in any traditional sense. You simply have to navigate a expansive environment as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can barely stand on his wobbly legs. It seems like one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps game’s power lies in its surprisingly deep narrative that will surprise you when it's most unexpected. There’s no situation that showcases that quality like a pivotal decision that I can’t stop thinking about.

Spoiler Warning

A bit of context is needed at this point. Baby Steps begins as Nate is transported from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He quickly discovers that moving around in it is a challenge, as years spent as a inactive individual have weakened his muscles. The slapstick elements of it all comes from users guiding Nate step by step, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate needs help, but he has difficulty expressing that to other characters. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to assist him. A cool, confident hiker attempts to offer Nate a guide, but he clumsily declines in the game’s funniest instant. When he plunges into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he requires no assistance and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. During the narrative, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he realizes that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) appears 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 Obstacle. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game has to offer; choosing it looks risky to anyone.

But there’s a other possibility: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs in its place and reach the summit in just moments. The only caveat? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Painful Choice

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an agonizing choice in the game's narrative. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. A portion of Nate's adventure is focused on the reality that he’s self-conscious of his body and his masculinity. Every time he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of all he lacks. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that road is bound to be paved with more humiliating failures. Is it justified suffering just to demonstrate something?

The staircase, on the other hand, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can choose to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt each time you see a simple solution. The world is filled with design traps that turn a safe route into a obstacle suddenly. Is the staircase one more trick? Might Nate arrive to the very summit just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And even worse, is he prepared to be humiliated yet again by being made to address a strange individual as Master?

No Right or Wrong

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no perfect selection. Either one leads to a authentic instance of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Obstacle, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate at last receives a chance to prove that he’s as able as anyone else, voluntarily accepting a challenging way rather than struggling through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s difficult, and possibly risky, but it’s the moment of strength that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the stairs as well. To choose that path is to at last permit Nate to take support. And when he does, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback in store for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They go on for a long time, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip all the way down if he falls. It’s a easy journey after hours of struggle. Partway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, unsurprisingly, opted for The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can discern that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to pay his debt, addressing his new Master, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has energy for shame by this freak?

My Experience

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