The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Meaningful Choices I Have Ever Encountered in Video Games

I've encountered some hard choices in interactive entertainment. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's final sequence led me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I weighed my options. I am accountable for so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what now might be the hardest choice I’ve had to make in a video game — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

The Game Baby Steps, the newest release from the developers of Ape Out game, is not really a decision-focused experience. Definitely not in typical gaming terms. You only need to navigate a vast game world as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can hardly stay upright on his wobbly legs. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will surprise you when you’re least expecting it. There’s not a single instance that exemplifies that strength like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

A bit of context is necessary here. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is magically whisked away from the basement of his home and into a magical realm. He quickly discovers that moving around in it is a struggle, as years spent as a inactive individual have atrophied his limbs. The humorous physicality of it all stems from gamers directing Nate step by step, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to anyone. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a collection of quirky personalities in the world who each propose to give him a hand. A self-assured trekker tries to give Nate a map, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he plunges into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he requires no assistance and actually wants to be trapped in the pit. Throughout the story, you encounter plenty of annoying scenarios where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

Everything builds up in Baby Steps game’s key situation of decision. As Nate gets close to finishing his quest, he finds that he must ascend of a frosty elevation. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two paths upward. If he’s ready for a test, he can take an extremely long and hazardous route dubbed The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps has to offer; taking it seems inadvisable to any person.

But there’s a second option: He can just walk up a massive winding stairs as an alternative and reach the summit in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Difficult Selection

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an painful decision in this situation. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the truth that he’s unconfident of his physical appearance and manhood. Every time he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a difficult memory of what he fails to be. Taking on The Challenge could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be paved with more humiliating failures. Does it merit suffering just to demonstrate something?

The steps, on the flip side, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to choose whether to take assistance or not. The player has no choice in about they reject navigation help, but they can decide to provide Nate with respite and take the stairs. It should be an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about causing suspicion each time you see a simple solution. The environment includes intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a difficulty suddenly. Is the staircase one more trick? Could Nate reach at the peak just to be fooled by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he ready to be diminished yet again by being compelled to refer to an odd character as Lord?

No Perfect Choice

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no perfect selection. Both options brings about a real situation of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as able as anyone else, willingly taking on a tough path rather than enduring one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s hard, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the steps too. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to take support. And when he accomplishes that, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he doesn’t slide all the way down if he trips. It’s a simple climb after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, naturally, chosen to take The Manbreaker. He strives to appear composed, but you can see that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to fulfill his obligation, addressing his new Master, the arrangement scarcely looks so bad. Who has time to be embarrassed by this odd character?

My Experience

When I played, I chose the staircase. Part of me just {wanted to call