The Game Baby Steps Includes One of the Most Meaningful Decisions I've Ever Encountered in a Game

I've encountered some hard decisions in interactive entertainment. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima concluding moments made me put my controller down for a good 10 minutes while I thought through my options. I am accountable for countless Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what now might be the toughest selection I've ever made in interactive media — and it involves a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the makers of Ape Out game, is not really a decision-focused experience. Definitely not in the conventional way. You simply have to navigate a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can barely stand on his unsteady feet. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps’s strength comes from its surprisingly deep narrative that will surprise you when it's most unexpected. There’s no moment that demonstrates that power like a key selection that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps game starts when the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that walking through it is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a inactive individual have atrophied his limbs. The physical comedy of it all arises from gamers directing Nate gradually, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has difficulty expressing that to anyone. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a collection of quirky personalities in the world who each propose to assist him. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a map, but he clumsily declines in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he plunges into an inescapable pit and is presented with a ladder, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and genuinely desires to be stuck in the hole. As the plot unfolds, you experience no shortage of annoying scenarios where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s not confident enough to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of selection. As Nate nears the end his adventure, he finds that he must reach the summit of a snowy mountain. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) shows up to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and dangerous hiking trail named The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps provides; taking it seems inadvisable to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a massive winding stairs instead and get to the top in just moments. The single stipulation? He’ll have to address the guardian “Lord” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

An Agonizing Decision

I am very serious when I say that this is an difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself culminating in one absurd moment. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the fact that he’s insecure of his body and his masculinity. Each instance he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of everything he’s not. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a time where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his unilateral competitor, but that road is bound to be paved with more awkward mishaps. Is it worth striving just to prove a point?

The steps, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to either accept or reject help. The gamer cannot choose in about they decline guidance, but they can choose to give Nate a break and choose the staircase. It might seem like an easy choice, but Baby Steps is exceptionally cunning about making you feel paranoid anytime you see a simple solution. The world is filled with intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a difficulty instantly. Could the steps yet another trap? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be let down by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Both options results in a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate at last receives a chance to prove that he’s as capable as others, consciously choosing a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s challenging, and possibly risky, but it’s the moment of strength that he needs.

But there’s no shame in the stairs either. To select that route is to finally allow Nate to accept help. And when he does so, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They continue for a while, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip completely down if he stumbles. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Partway through, he even has a chat with the trekker who has, naturally, selected The Obstacle. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s worn out, quietly regretting the needless difficulty. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to meet his agreement, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so unpleasant. Who has concern for humiliation by this freak?

Personal Reflection

In my playthrough, I opted for the stairs. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call