The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Meaningful Choices I Have Ever Faced in a Game

I've encountered some hard choices in interactive entertainment. Several of my selections in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's ending section led me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my choices. I am responsible for so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. Not one of those instances compare to what could be the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in interactive media — and it involves a enormous set of steps.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out, is not really a choice-driven game. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You must navigate a sprawling open world as the main character Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his shaky limbs. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s strength comes from its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when you’re least expecting it. There’s no moment that demonstrates that power like a pivotal decision that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps game begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from his parents’ basement and into a fantasy world. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a challenge, as years spent as a sedentary person have weakened his muscles. The humorous physicality of it all arises from users guiding Nate gradually, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has difficulty expressing that to other characters. During his adventure, he meets a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to help him out. A cool, confident hiker seeks to provide Nate a navigation aid, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s funniest instant. When he falls into an unavoidable hole and is given a way out, he attempts to act casual like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. Throughout the story, you experience no shortage of frustrating vignettes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s not confident enough to take support.

The Defining Decision

Everything builds up in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he discovers that he must ascend of a snowy mountain. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s ready for a test, he can take an extremely long and risky path called The Obstacle. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game includes; attempting it appears unwise to anyone.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a massive winding stairs instead and arrive at the peak in a short time. The only caveat? He’ll have to address the guardian “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself reaching a climax in a single ridiculous instant. An element of Nate's story is centered around the fact that he’s self-conscious of his body and his masculinity. Every time he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of what he fails to be. Attempting The Manbreaker could be a time where he can prove that he’s as competent as his unilateral competitor, but that path is likely paved with more awkward mishaps. Does it merit suffering just to demonstrate something?

The staircase, on the other hand, give Nate another big moment to choose whether to take assistance or not. The player has no choice in about they turn away a map, but they can decide to provide Nate with respite and choose the staircase. It ought to be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is exceptionally cunning about creating doubt anytime you encounter an easy option. The world is filled with planned obstacles that change a secure way into a difficulty on a dime. Is the staircase an additional deception? Could Nate reach all the way to the top just to be disappointed by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated another time by being compelled to refer to some weirdo Lord?

No Perfect Choice

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path brings about a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Obstacle, it’s an personal triumph. Nate at last receives a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as capable as everyone else, voluntarily accepting a tough path rather than suffering through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the moment of strength that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the staircase as well. To opt for that way is to finally allow Nate to receive assistance. And when he does, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They extend for some distance, but they’re easy to walk up and he doesn’t slide to the bottom if he falls. It’s a easy journey after hours of struggle. Halfway up, he even has a conversation with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, selected The Challenge. He strives to appear composed, but you can see that he’s exhausted, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so bad. Who has time to be embarrassed by this strange individual?

My Choice

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