Baby Steps Features One of the Most Significant Decisions I Have Ever Faced in Video Games

I've encountered some hard choices in video games. Several of my selections in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima's ending section prompted me to put my controller down for around ten minutes while I weighed my options. I am the cause of countless Krogan deaths in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. None of those moments compare to what possibly is the hardest choice I've faced in gaming — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out, is hardly a selection-based adventure. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You must navigate a vast game world as the protagonist Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his wobbly legs. It seems like one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps game’s power lies in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when it's most unexpected. There’s not a single instance that exemplifies that strength like one major choice that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps begins as Nate is transported from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He immediately finds that walking through it is a struggle, as a long time spent as a inactive individual have weakened his muscles. The physical comedy of it all comes from players controlling Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate requires assistance, but he has trouble voicing that to others. As he progresses, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to assist him. A self-assured trekker attempts to offer Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he plunges into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and truly prefers to be trapped in the pit. As the plot unfolds, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

Everything builds up in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate gets close to finishing his adventure, he discovers that he must climb to the top of a snowy mountain. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) shows up to inform him that there are two ways up. If he’s up for a challenge, he can opt for a particularly extended and risky path called The Challenge. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps game includes; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a second option: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs in its place and get to the top in just moments. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he takes the easy route.

An Agonizing Decision

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an difficult selection in context. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself culminating in a single ridiculous instant. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the reality that he’s self-conscious of his physique and male identity. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a difficult memory of what he fails to be. Taking on The Obstacle could be a moment where he can prove that he’s as capable as his unilateral competitor, but that path is likely filled with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it justified striving just to prove a point?

The steps, on the other hand, give Nate another big moment to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and take the stairs. It ought to be an straightforward selection, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt each time you find a gift horse. The world is filled with planned obstacles that turn a safe route into a setback on a dime. Is the staircase an additional deception? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be fooled by an ending prank? And more troubling, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being compelled to refer to an odd character as Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Each path brings about a real situation of personal growth and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as able as everyone else, voluntarily accepting a tough path rather than suffering through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the moment of strength that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the staircase as well. To opt for that way is to finally allow Nate to take support. And when he does so, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback awaiting him. The steps are not a joke. They extend for some distance, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he won't slip completely down if he stumbles. It’s a simple climb after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the hiker who has, of course, selected The Challenge. He strives to appear composed, but you can see that he’s fatigued, subtly ruing the pointless struggle. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to meet his agreement, hailing his new Lord, the deal hardly seems so unpleasant. Who has concern for humiliation by this strange individual?

My Experience

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