The Game Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Faced in Gaming

I've dealt with some challenging choices in video games. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section led me to set down my controller for a good 10 minutes while I considered my choices. I am responsible for so many Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I would love to reverse. None of those moments compare to what now might be the most difficult decision I've faced in interactive media — and it concerns a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a choice-driven game. At least not in typical gaming terms. You only need to explore a vast game world as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It looks like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps game’s strength comes from its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will sneak up on you when it's most unexpected. There’s no situation that demonstrates that power like a key selection that I keep reflecting on.

Alert: Spoilers

Some scene setting is needed at this point. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is transported from his parents’ basement and into a fantasy world. He soon realizes that navigating this world is a difficulty, as a long time spent as a inactive individual have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all comes from gamers directing Nate one step at a time, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate requires assistance, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who everyone tries to give him a hand. A cool, confident hiker attempts to offer Nate a guide, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an trapping cavity and is offered a ladder, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and actually wants to be stuck in the hole. As the plot unfolds, you see numerous frustrating vignettes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of decision. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he realizes that he must climb to the top of a snowy mountain. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) comes to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s ready for a test, he can opt for a particularly extended and hazardous route named The Challenge. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps includes; attempting it appears unwise to any person.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and get to the top in a short time. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Lord” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am very serious when I say that this is an painful decision in context. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is revolves around the truth that he’s insecure of his physique and male identity. Whenever he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a hard reminder of all he lacks. Attempting The Manbreaker could be a time where he can prove that he’s as able as his imagined opponent, but that road is bound to be paved with more humiliating failures. Is it justified struggling just to prove a point?

The stairs, on the flip side, give Nate another big moment to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in if they decline guidance, but they can decide to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It might seem like an easy choice, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about creating doubt whenever you find a gift horse. The game world contains planned obstacles that transform an easy path into a difficulty instantly. Is the staircase one more trick? Could Nate reach all the way to the top just to be fooled by a final joke? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished once again by being made to address a strange individual as Master?

No Perfect Choice

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path brings about a genuine moment of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as able as everyone else, willingly taking on a difficult route rather than struggling through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s difficult, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the steps too. To choose that path is to finally allow Nate to accept help. And when he accomplishes that, he finds that there’s no real catch waiting for him. The staircase is not a trick. They go on for a long time, but they’re simple to climb and he won't slip completely down if he stumbles. It’s a straightforward ascent after lengthy difficulty. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the outdoorsman who has, of course, opted for The Obstacle. He strives to appear composed, but you can see that he’s worn out, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the arrangement scarcely looks so unpleasant. Who has energy for shame by this strange individual?

My Choice

During my game, I opted for the stairs. Part of me just {wanted to call