Baby Steps Presents One of the Most Significant Choices I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've dealt with some difficult choices in gaming. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's final sequence led me to pause the game for around ten minutes while I thought through my choices. I am responsible for so many Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. Not one of those instances compare to what possibly is the hardest choice I've ever made in gaming — and it concerns a enormous set of steps.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the makers of Ape Out, is not really a choice-driven game. Definitely not in the conventional way. You simply have to explore a sprawling open world as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his wobbly legs. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its surprisingly deep narrative that will catch you off guard when you’re least expecting it. There’s not a single instance that showcases that quality like a pivotal decision that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps game begins as Nate is magically whisked away from his family's basement and into a magical realm. He immediately finds that walking through it is a difficulty, as years spent as a inactive individual have deteriorated his physical condition. The humorous physicality of it all stems from players controlling Nate gradually, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has trouble voicing that to anyone. As he progresses, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A composed outdoorsman seeks to provide Nate a map, but he clumsily declines in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he falls into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he doesn’t need the help and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. Throughout the story, you experience no shortage of annoying scenarios where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of selection. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he realizes that he must climb to the top of a frosty elevation. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to tell him that there are two ways up. If he’s up for a challenge, he can opt for a particularly extended and hazardous route called The Challenge. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to anyone.

But there’s a other possibility: He can merely climb a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and reach the summit in a few minutes. The only caveat? He’ll have to address the guardian “Sir” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

An Agonizing Decision

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an agonizing choice in this situation. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself reaching a climax in one absurd moment. An element of Nate's story is centered around the fact that he’s self-conscious of his physique and male identity. Each instance he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a hard reminder of what he fails to be. Taking on The Challenge could be a time where he can show that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that road is bound to be laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit striving just to demonstrate something?

The stairs, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to either accept or reject help. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can choose to provide Nate with respite and choose the staircase. It ought to be an straightforward selection, but Baby Steps is exceptionally cunning about causing suspicion whenever you encounter an easy option. The environment includes planned obstacles that change a secure way into a difficulty suddenly. Is the staircase one more trick? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be let down by a final joke? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated once again by being compelled to refer to a strange individual as Master?

No Perfect Choice

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Each path results in a authentic instance of protagonist evolution and emotional release for Nate. If you decide to take on The Obstacle, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a moment to show that he’s as able as anyone else, willingly taking on 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 bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the staircase too. To select that route is to at last permit Nate to take support. And when he does, he realizes that there’s no hidden trick waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They extend for some distance, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip completely down if he trips. It’s a easy journey after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the trekker who has, of course, selected The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can see that he’s fatigued, quietly regretting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to fulfill his obligation, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so unpleasant. Who has time to be embarrassed by this freak?

Personal Reflection

During my game, I chose the staircase. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call