Baby Steps Presents One of the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Encountered in Video Games

I've encountered some hard choices in gaming. Several of my selections in Life is Strange continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima concluding moments made me set down my controller for around ten minutes while I considered my options. I am accountable for numerous Krogan demises in the Mass Effect series that I wish I could undo. Not a single one of those situations hold a candle to what possibly is the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in interactive media — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out, is hardly a choice-driven game. At least not in the conventional way. You must explore a vast game world as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can hardly stay upright on his wobbly legs. It appears to be a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in 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 remains on my mind.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is required here. Baby Steps game begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that walking through it is a struggle, as years spent as a inactive individual have atrophied his limbs. The slapstick elements of it all comes from players controlling Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has problems articulating that to others. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a cast of eccentric characters in the world who each propose to assist him. A self-assured trekker attempts to offer Nate a guide, but he clumsily declines in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he drops into an trapping cavity and is presented with a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he doesn’t need the help and genuinely desires to be stuck in the hole. Throughout the story, you experience no shortage of irritating episodes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to take support.

The Defining Decision

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of decision. As Nate gets close to finishing his journey, he finds that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) comes 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 dubbed The Challenge. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps provides; choosing it looks risky to any human.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can just walk up a massive winding stairs in its place and get to the top in a few minutes. The only caveat? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Sir” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

An Agonizing Decision

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an painful decision in this situation. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in one absurd moment. A portion of Nate's adventure is centered around the reality that he’s insecure of his physical appearance and manhood. Whenever he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a hard reminder of all he lacks. Taking on The Obstacle could be a moment where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that route is sure to be paved with more awkward mishaps. Is it worth striving just to prove a point?

The stairs, on the other hand, give Nate another big moment to either accept or reject help. The gamer cannot choose in whether or not they reject navigation help, but they can decide to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It might seem like an straightforward selection, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt whenever you encounter an easy option. The environment includes design traps that change a secure way into a setback instantly. Could the steps one more trick? Will Nate get at the peak just to be let down by a final joke? And more troubling, is he prepared to be humiliated yet again by being made to address an odd character as Lord?

No Correct Answer

The brilliance of that instant is that there’s no perfect selection. Each path brings about a real situation of character development and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Challenge, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a chance to prove that he’s as able as everyone else, willingly taking on a tough path rather than suffering through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s hard, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he requires.

But there’s no disgrace in the stairs too. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to accept help. And when he does so, he realizes that there’s no secret drawback awaiting him. The steps are not a joke. They extend for some distance, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip all the way down if he falls. It’s a straightforward ascent after hours of struggle. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, of course, chosen to take The Obstacle. He tries to play it cool, but you can tell that he’s fatigued, quietly regretting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to fulfill his obligation, 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 chose the staircase. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call