The Game Baby Steps Includes Among the Most Significant Decisions I Have Ever Faced in a Game

I've dealt with some challenging decisions in gaming. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima's ending section led me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I weighed my choices. I am accountable for numerous Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I regret deeply. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what now might be the toughest selection I’ve had to make in a video game — and it concerns a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the newest release from the developers of Ape Out, is hardly a selection-based adventure. At least not in any traditional sense. You only need to explore a vast game world as Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his shaky limbs. It appears to be one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when it's most unexpected. There’s no moment that showcases that quality like one major choice that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

A bit of context is necessary here. Baby Steps game begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from his family's basement and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a difficulty, as years spent as a couch potato have weakened his muscles. The physical comedy of it all stems from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a cast of eccentric characters in the world who all offer to help him out. A composed outdoorsman tries to give Nate a guide, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he plunges into an unavoidable hole and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be stuck in the hole. As the plot unfolds, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s not confident enough to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s key situation of decision. As Nate nears the end his quest, he discovers that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) comes 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 hazardous route named The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps includes; attempting it appears unwise to any person.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a massive winding stairs as an alternative and reach the summit in a few minutes. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an agonizing choice in this situation. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself coming to a head in one absurd moment. Part of Nate’s journey is focused on the fact that he’s insecure of his physical appearance and manhood. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a painful recollection of all he lacks. Attempting The Manbreaker could be a moment where he can show that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that path is likely filled with more awkward mishaps. Is it worth struggling just to demonstrate something?

The steps, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to either accept or reject help. The user doesn't get to decide in whether or not they decline guidance, but they can opt to give Nate a break and take the stairs. It should be an simple decision, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about creating doubt anytime you find a gift horse. The game world contains design traps that transform an easy path into a difficulty instantly. Is the staircase one more trick? Might Nate arrive to the very summit just to be fooled by some last-second gag? And more troubling, is he willing to be emasculated once again by being forced to call an odd character as Lord?

No Perfect Choice

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 therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Obstacle, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as everyone else, willingly taking on a tough path rather than enduring one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the steps as well. To choose that path is to at last permit Nate to take support. And when he does so, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback awaiting him. The steps are not a joke. They continue for a while, but they’re simple to climb and he doesn’t slide all the way down if he stumbles. It’s a simple climb after hours of struggle. Partway through, he even has a chat with the hiker who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Challenge. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to meet his agreement, calling the character Lord, the arrangement scarcely looks so nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this freak?

My Experience

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