Baby Steps Includes Among the Most Impactful Decisions I Have Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've dealt with some hard choices in video games. Several of my selections in Life is Strange remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence made me put my controller down for several minutes while I considered my choices. I am the cause of numerous Krogan demises in the Mass Effect series that I regret deeply. None of those moments compare to what now might be the most difficult decision I've faced in gaming — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out, is hardly a decision-focused experience. Definitely not in typical gaming terms. You must explore a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can barely stand on his shaky limbs. It appears to be one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps’s strength comes from its surprisingly deep narrative that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s no situation that showcases that quality like a pivotal decision that I keep reflecting on.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps starts when Nate is transported from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that navigating this world is a challenge, as a lifetime spent as a inactive individual have atrophied his limbs. The humorous physicality of it all comes from users guiding Nate gradually, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has problems articulating that to anyone. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A composed outdoorsman tries to give Nate a guide, but he clumsily declines in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he plunges into an trapping cavity and is presented with a ladder, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and genuinely desires to be stuck in the hole. Throughout the story, you experience no shortage of irritating episodes where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

Everything builds up in Baby Steps game’s key situation of selection. As Nate nears the end his quest, he finds that he must reach the summit of a snow-capped peak. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) comes to inform him that there are two paths upward. If he’s up for a challenge, he can opt for a particularly extended and dangerous hiking trail called The Obstacle. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs as an alternative and reach the summit in a short time. The only caveat? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

An Agonizing Decision

I am very serious when I say that this is an difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself culminating in one absurd moment. A portion of Nate's adventure is centered around the truth that he’s unconfident of his body and his masculinity. Whenever he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a hard reminder of everything he’s not. Undertaking The Obstacle could be a moment where he can prove that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be filled with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit striving just to demonstrate something?

The stairs, on the contrary, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to either accept or reject help. The player has no choice in whether or not they decline guidance, but they can decide to give Nate a break and take the stairs. It ought to be an straightforward selection, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about creating doubt anytime you see a simple solution. The environment includes design traps that change a secure way into a obstacle suddenly. Could the steps one more trick? Could Nate reach at the peak just to be let down by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated yet again by being made to address an odd character as Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no perfect selection. Each path leads to a real situation of character development and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate eventually obtains a moment to show that he’s as capable as others, willingly taking on a challenging way rather than enduring one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s difficult, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the staircase either. To select that route is to at last permit Nate to take support. And when he does so, he discovers that there’s no hidden trick waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They continue for a while, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he does not fall all the way down if he stumbles. It’s a straightforward ascent after hours of struggle. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the trekker who has, naturally, selected The Challenge. He tries to play it cool, but you can discern that he’s worn out, subtly ruing the needless difficulty. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the deal hardly seems so unpleasant. Who has energy for shame by this odd character?

My Choice

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