The Game Baby Steps Features One of the Most Meaningful Choices I Have Ever Experienced in a Game

I've faced some difficult decisions in interactive entertainment. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence prompted me to set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my choices. I am accountable for countless Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations compare to what now might be the most difficult decision I've faced in interactive media — and it concerns a massive stairway.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the developers of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a choice-driven game. At least not in any traditional sense. You only need to walk around a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can struggle to remain on his wobbly legs. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, 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 one major choice that I keep reflecting on.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps begins as Nate is magically whisked away from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He quickly discovers that walking through it is a difficulty, as a long time spent as a couch potato have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all stems from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to prevent him from falling over.

Nate needs help, but he has difficulty expressing that to others. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a cast of eccentric characters in the world who everyone tries to help him out. A composed outdoorsman seeks to provide Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s funniest instant. When he plunges into an unavoidable hole and is given a way out, he tries to play it off like he doesn’t need the help and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. As the plot unfolds, you encounter plenty of irritating episodes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to take support.

The Pivotal Moment

That comes to a head in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his quest, he discovers that he must climb to the top of a frosty elevation. The unofficial caretaker 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 up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and risky path dubbed The Obstacle. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps includes; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a second option: He can simply ascend a massive winding stairs in its place and reach the summit in a short time. The only caveat? 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 agonizing choice in context. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. An element of Nate's story is focused on the reality that he’s self-conscious of his physical appearance and manhood. Whenever he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a painful recollection of everything he’s not. Attempting The Challenge could be a instance where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that route is sure to be paved with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it worth striving just to prove a point?

The steps, on the contrary, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they turn away a map, but they can opt to allow Nate some relief and take the stairs. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about making you feel paranoid each time you find a gift horse. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a setback on a dime. Could the steps yet another trap? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be disappointed by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he prepared to be humiliated yet again by being compelled to refer to some weirdo Lord?

No Perfect Choice

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Each path results in a authentic instance of personal growth and catharsis for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate finally gets a chance to prove 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 hard, and possibly risky, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he craves.

But there’s no embarrassment in the stairs either. To opt for that way is to finally allow Nate to receive assistance. And when he does so, he finds that there’s no secret drawback in store for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They go on for a long time, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip completely down if he stumbles. It’s a simple climb after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a chat with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can discern that he’s fatigued, silently lamenting the needless difficulty. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, hailing his new Lord, the agreement barely appears so bad. Who has concern for humiliation by this strange individual?

My Experience

During my game, I selected the steps. Part of me just {wanted to call