Baby Steps Features Among the Most Significant Decisions I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've dealt with some difficult decisions in video games. Several of my selections in Life is Strange continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima's ending section made me set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my alternatives. I am responsible for countless Krogan fatalities in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. None of those moments compare to what now might be the toughest selection I've ever made in interactive media — and it has to do with a enormous set of steps.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out, is not really a choice-driven game. At least not in any traditional sense. You only need to navigate a vast game world as the main character Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in its surprisingly deep narrative that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s no moment that showcases that quality like a pivotal decision that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps starts when the protagonist is suddenly taken from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that moving around in it is a challenge, as years spent as a sedentary person have weakened his muscles. The humorous physicality of it all stems from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has difficulty expressing that to others. Throughout his hero’s journey, he comes in contact with a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to assist him. A composed outdoorsman tries to give Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an inescapable pit and is given a way out, he tries to play it off like he doesn’t need the help and genuinely desires to be confined in the cavity. Throughout the story, you encounter plenty of irritating episodes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too self-conscious to take support.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he realizes that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) appears to tell him that there are two ways up. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can take an extremely long and hazardous route named The Manbreaker. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps provides; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and reach the summit in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Lord” from now on if he takes the easy route.

An Agonizing Decision

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an agonizing choice in context. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself coming to a head in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is revolves around the truth that he’s insecure of his physical appearance and manhood. Each instance he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a difficult memory of all he lacks. Taking on The Challenge could be a time where he can prove that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that route is sure to be laden with more humiliating failures. Does it merit suffering just to prove a point?

The staircase, on the flip side, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to either accept or reject help. The gamer cannot choose in if they reject navigation help, but they can choose to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It might seem like an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about making you feel paranoid each time you see a simple solution. The world is filled with planned obstacles that transform an easy path into a setback instantly. Is the staircase one more trick? Could Nate reach all the way to the top just to be let down by a final joke? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated once again by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Both options leads to a real situation of personal growth and emotional release for Nate. If you opt to attempt The Manbreaker, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate eventually obtains a chance to prove that he’s as able as anyone else, consciously choosing a tough path rather than struggling through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s challenging, and possibly risky, but it’s the dose of confidence that he needs.

But there’s no disgrace in the steps too. To opt for that way is to at last permit Nate to accept help. And when he does, he realizes that there’s no real catch awaiting him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re simple to climb and he does not fall completely down if he trips. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Halfway up, he even has a conversation with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, selected The Manbreaker. He strives to appear composed, but you can tell that he’s worn out, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, addressing his new Master, the arrangement scarcely looks so nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this strange individual?

My Choice

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