The Game Baby Steps Includes Among the Most Meaningful Decisions I Have Ever Encountered in a Game

I've encountered some hard decisions in video games. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section led me to pause the game for around ten minutes while I thought through my choices. I am the cause of so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. None of those moments hold a candle to what could be the toughest selection I've ever made in gaming — and it concerns a massive stairway.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out game, isn’t exactly a selection-based adventure. Certainly not in typical gaming terms. You must explore a expansive environment as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can barely stand on his unsteady feet. It looks like one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will catch you off guard when you least anticipate it. There’s no situation that demonstrates that power like one major choice that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps game begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a magical realm. He quickly discovers that walking through it is a struggle, as a long time spent as a sedentary person have deteriorated his physical condition. The humorous physicality of it all comes from players controlling Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate requires assistance, but he has problems articulating that to other characters. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a cast of eccentric characters in the world who each propose to give him a hand. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a guide, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he falls into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. During the narrative, you experience no shortage of frustrating vignettes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Ultimate Choice

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of selection. As Nate nears the end his adventure, he discovers that he must reach the summit of a snowy mountain. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two ways up. If he’s ready for a test, he can take an extremely long and dangerous hiking trail named The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps provides; choosing it looks risky to any human.

But there’s a other possibility: He can simply ascend a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and arrive at the peak in just moments. The only caveat? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “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 difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself culminating in a single ridiculous instant. An element of Nate's story is focused on the truth that he’s self-conscious 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 moment where he can prove that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that road is bound to be laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit suffering just to demonstrate something?

The staircase, on the other hand, provide Nate with another significant opportunity to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The player has no choice in about they reject navigation help, but they can choose to give Nate a break and opt for the steps. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about causing suspicion anytime you see a simple solution. The game world contains intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a setback suddenly. Are the stairs yet another trap? Might Nate arrive all the way to the top just to be disappointed by some last-second gag? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished another time by being made to address a strange individual as Master?

No Right or Wrong

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path results in a authentic instance of personal growth and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you decide to take on The Obstacle, it’s an personal triumph. Nate finally gets a moment to show that he’s as able as everyone else, willingly taking on a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s hard, and possibly risky, but it’s the moment of strength that he needs.

But there’s no shame in the stairs as well. To select that route is to finally allow Nate to take support. And when he does so, he discovers that there’s no hidden trick waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They continue for a while, but they’re easy to walk up and he doesn’t slide to the bottom if he stumbles. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Halfway up, he even has a discussion with the trekker who has, naturally, selected The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s worn out, silently lamenting the needless difficulty. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to pay his debt, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so bad. Who has energy for shame by this strange individual?

My Experience

When I played, I selected the steps. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call