Baby Steps Features Among the Most Impactful Decisions I Have Ever Encountered in a Game

I've dealt with some challenging choices in interactive entertainment. Several of my selections in Life is Strange continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence prompted me to pause the game for a good 10 minutes while I weighed my options. I am responsible for numerous Krogan deaths in the Mass Effect series that I regret deeply. Not one of those instances hold a candle to what could be the toughest selection I've ever made in interactive media — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the makers of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a decision-focused experience. Certainly not in any traditional sense. You simply have to walk around a expansive environment as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his shaky limbs. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its deceptively impactful story that will catch you off guard when you’re least expecting it. There’s no situation that exemplifies that strength like one major choice that I keep reflecting on.

Alert: Spoilers

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps game begins as Nate is transported from his family's basement and into a fantasy world. He immediately finds that moving around in it is a struggle, as a lifetime spent as a sedentary person have atrophied his limbs. The physical comedy of it all stems from players controlling Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has problems articulating that to anyone. During his adventure, he encounters a cast of eccentric characters in the world who everyone tries to assist him. A cool, confident hiker 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 doesn’t need the help and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. As the plot unfolds, you experience no shortage of irritating episodes where Nate makes life harder for himself because he’s not confident enough to accept any assistance.

The Pivotal Moment

Everything builds up in Baby Steps’s one true moment of selection. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he realizes that he must ascend of a snowy mountain. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) appears to tell him that there are two routes to the top. If he’s up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and hazardous route called The Manbreaker. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps game has to offer; choosing it looks risky to anyone.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a gigantic spiral staircase as an alternative and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Lord” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Difficult Selection

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an difficult selection in context. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself reaching a climax in one absurd moment. A portion of Nate's adventure is focused on the fact that he’s self-conscious of his physical appearance and manhood. Each instance he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a difficult memory of everything he’s not. Undertaking The Manbreaker could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be laden with more awkward mishaps. Is it worth suffering just to prove a point?

The stairs, on the contrary, give Nate another big moment to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The user doesn't get to decide in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and opt for the steps. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about creating doubt anytime you find a gift horse. The world is filled with intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a setback on a dime. Could the steps one more trick? Might Nate arrive at the peak just to be fooled by a final joke? And more concerning, is he ready to be diminished yet again by being forced to call an odd character as Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Both options leads to a authentic instance of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Challenge, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate eventually obtains a moment to show that he’s as capable as others, voluntarily accepting a challenging way rather than struggling through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s challenging, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the moment of strength that he requires.

But there’s no disgrace in the steps either. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to take support. And when he accomplishes that, he discovers that there’s no hidden trick in store for him. The steps are not a joke. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he won't slip completely down if he falls. It’s a simple climb after lengthy difficulty. Partway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Obstacle. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, calling the character Lord, the arrangement scarcely looks so nasty. Who has energy for shame by this strange individual?

My Choice

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