The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Meaningful Decisions I Have Ever Experienced in a Game

I've encountered some difficult decisions in interactive entertainment. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence led me to pause the game for around ten minutes while I considered my choices. I am responsible for so many 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 has to do with a enormous set of steps.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a decision-focused experience. At least not in typical gaming terms. You simply have to walk around a sprawling open world as the main character Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can barely stand on his wobbly legs. It appears to be a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will surprise you when you’re least expecting it. There’s not a single instance that demonstrates that power like a pivotal decision that I keep reflecting on.

Alert: Spoilers

A bit of context is needed at this point. Baby Steps begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from his parents’ basement and into a fantasy world. He immediately finds that walking through it is a difficulty, as a lifetime spent as a sedentary person have atrophied his limbs. The slapstick elements of it all arises from gamers directing Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate requires assistance, but he has trouble voicing that to others. Throughout his hero’s journey, he comes in contact with a group of unusual individuals in the world who each propose to help him out. A self-assured trekker seeks to provide Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he drops into an inescapable pit and is given a way out, he strives to appear nonchalant like he can manage alone and actually wants 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 take support.

The Ultimate Choice

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate nears the end his adventure, he finds that he must reach the summit of a snow-capped peak. The de facto groundskeeper 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 dubbed The Challenge. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game provides; attempting it appears unwise to any person.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a massive winding stairs as an alternative and get to the top in a few minutes. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Sir” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Difficult Selection

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an difficult selection in this situation. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself culminating in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is focused on the reality that he’s self-conscious of his physique and male identity. Whenever he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a hard reminder of what he fails to be. Taking on The Challenge could be a instance where he can prove that he’s as able as his one-sided rival, but that path is likely laden with more humiliating failures. Is it worth striving just to prove a point?

The stairs, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to either accept or reject help. The user doesn't get to decide in if they reject navigation help, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and take the stairs. It ought to be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt whenever you see a simple solution. The world is filled with planned obstacles that turn a safe route into a difficulty instantly. Is the staircase an additional deception? Will Nate get at the peak just to be fooled by an ending prank? And even worse, is he willing to be emasculated once again by being forced to call a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no perfect selection. Either one results in a genuine moment of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a moment to show that he’s as able as everyone else, voluntarily accepting a difficult route rather than enduring one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s hard, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he craves.

But there’s no embarrassment in the steps too. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to receive assistance. And when he does, he finds that there’s no hidden trick in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip all the way down if he falls. It’s a easy journey after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, of course, selected The Obstacle. He strives to appear composed, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the needless difficulty. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to fulfill his obligation, addressing his new Master, the deal hardly seems so unpleasant. Who has energy for shame by this strange individual?

My Experience

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