Baby Steps Features Among the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Experienced in a Game

I've encountered some difficult choices in video games. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence made me set down my controller for several minutes while I weighed my options. I am the cause of numerous Krogan deaths in Mass Effect that I regret deeply. Not a single one of those situations hold a candle to what could be the toughest selection I've ever made in gaming — and it involves a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out, isn’t exactly a choice-driven game. At least not in the conventional way. You only need to explore a sprawling open world as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It looks like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will sneak up on you when it's most unexpected. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like one major choice that I keep reflecting on.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is required here. Baby Steps starts when Nate is magically whisked away from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He soon realizes that walking through it is a difficulty, as a long time spent as a couch potato have atrophied his limbs. The slapstick elements of it all stems from users guiding Nate gradually, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to others. During his adventure, he meets a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to assist him. A cool, confident hiker attempts to offer Nate a navigation aid, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he falls into an trapping cavity and is given a way out, he strives to appear nonchalant like he requires no assistance and actually wants to be confined in the cavity. During the narrative, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s key situation of selection. As Nate approaches the conclusion his adventure, he discovers that he must reach the summit of a frosty elevation. The de facto groundskeeper 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 risky path called The Challenge. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps provides; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a other possibility: He can just walk up a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and get to the top in a short time. The only caveat? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

An Agonizing Decision

I am very serious when I say that this is an agonizing choice in this situation. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in one absurd moment. An element of Nate's story is centered around the fact that he’s unconfident of his physique and male identity. Whenever he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a difficult memory of all he lacks. Taking on The Challenge could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his unilateral competitor, but that path is likely laden with more humiliating failures. Is it worth struggling just to demonstrate something?

The staircase, on the flip side, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in about they turn away a map, but they can choose to give Nate a break and choose the staircase. It might seem like an simple decision, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about creating doubt each time you see a simple solution. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that turn a safe route into a obstacle suddenly. Could the steps an additional deception? Will Nate get all the way to the top just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And even worse, is he ready to be diminished once again by being forced to call a strange individual as Master?

No Perfect Choice

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path results in a real situation of personal growth and catharsis for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Obstacle, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a moment to show that he’s as capable as others, willingly taking on a challenging way rather than struggling through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s hard, and possibly risky, but it’s the dose of confidence that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the staircase too. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to receive assistance. And when he does so, he realizes that there’s no hidden trick awaiting him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re easy to walk up and he doesn’t slide completely down if he trips. It’s a easy journey after hours of struggle. Halfway up, he even has a discussion with the hiker who has, of course, chosen to take The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can see that he’s worn out, quietly regretting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to fulfill his obligation, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this odd character?

My Experience

When I played, I selected the steps. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call