Baby Steps Features One of the Most Significant Choices I've Ever Faced in Gaming

I've dealt with some difficult decisions in interactive entertainment. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima ending section made me set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my options. I am the cause of numerous Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I wish I could undo. None of those moments measure up to what could be the hardest choice I’ve had to make in a video game — and it concerns a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out game, is hardly a selection-based adventure. Definitely not in the conventional way. You simply have to walk around a sprawling open world as Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can struggle to remain on his unsteady feet. It looks like one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s not a single instance that exemplifies that strength like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Alert: Spoilers

A bit of context is necessary here. Baby Steps begins as Nate is magically whisked away from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that navigating this world is a challenge, as years spent as a sedentary person have weakened his muscles. The slapstick elements of it all arises from gamers directing Nate gradually, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate needs help, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. During his adventure, he encounters a collection of quirky personalities in the world who each propose to assist him. A cool, confident hiker seeks to provide Nate a guide, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he falls into an trapping cavity and is given a way out, he attempts to act casual like he can manage alone and genuinely desires to be trapped in the pit. Throughout the story, you experience no shortage of annoying scenarios where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s not confident enough to take support.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s key situation of selection. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he finds that he must climb to the top of a snowy mountain. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) comes to tell him that there are two ways up. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can choose a very lengthy and dangerous hiking trail called The Obstacle. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a other possibility: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs as an alternative and get to the top in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to address the guardian “Sir” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Painful Choice

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an difficult selection in context. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself coming to a head in one absurd moment. An element of Nate's story is centered around the truth that he’s insecure of his physical appearance and manhood. Every time he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a painful recollection of everything he’s not. Attempting 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 filled with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit suffering just to make a statement?

The steps, on the other hand, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to choose whether to take assistance or not. The user doesn't get to decide in if they decline guidance, but they can choose to provide Nate with respite and choose the staircase. It ought to be an easy choice, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about causing suspicion anytime you encounter an easy option. The game world contains planned obstacles that change a secure way into a obstacle suddenly. Could the steps one more trick? Might Nate arrive at the peak just to be let down by a final joke? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished another time by being made to address some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Both options brings about a real situation of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an personal triumph. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as capable as anyone else, willingly taking on a difficult route rather than enduring one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s challenging, and possibly risky, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the stairs either. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to accept help. And when he does so, he realizes that there’s no real catch in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he doesn’t slide completely down if he falls. It’s a simple climb after hours of struggle. Partway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, of course, opted for The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, subtly ruing the needless difficulty. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has energy for shame by this odd character?

My Experience

When I played, I opted for the stairs. Part of me just {wanted to call