The Game Baby Steps Features Among the Most Impactful Choices I Have Ever Encountered in Video Games

I've encountered some difficult decisions in interactive entertainment. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section led me to pause the game for several minutes while I considered my choices. I am accountable for so many Krogan demises in Mass Effect that I would love to reverse. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what possibly is the hardest choice I've ever made in interactive media — and it has to do with a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the creators of Ape Out, is not really a choice-driven game. Definitely not in typical gaming terms. You must walk around a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a adult in a onesie who can barely stand on his unsteady feet. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps game’s strength comes from its surprisingly deep narrative that will catch you off guard when you’re least expecting it. There’s no situation that exemplifies that strength like a key selection that I keep reflecting on.

Spoiler Warning

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is magically whisked away from the basement of his home and into a magical realm. He quickly discovers that walking through it is a difficulty, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all arises from users guiding Nate one step at a time, trying to prevent him from falling over.

Nate requires assistance, but he has trouble voicing that to anyone. As he progresses, he meets a collection of quirky personalities in the world who each propose to assist him. A self-assured trekker tries to give Nate a map, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he plunges into an unavoidable hole and is given a way out, he tries to play it off like he requires no assistance and actually wants to be confined in the cavity. Throughout the story, you encounter plenty of irritating episodes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too insecure to receive help.

The Defining Decision

Everything builds up in Baby Steps game’s single genuine instance of selection. As Nate nears the end his journey, he realizes that he must reach the summit of a snowy mountain. 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 risky path named The Challenge. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game provides; choosing it looks risky to anyone.

But there’s a other possibility: He can merely climb a gigantic spiral staircase in its place and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The only caveat? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Difficult Selection

I am very serious when I say that this is an difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. A portion of Nate's adventure is revolves around the truth that he’s insecure of his physical appearance and manhood. Every time he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a difficult memory of what he fails to be. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a instance where he can prove that he’s as able as his imagined opponent, but that route is sure to be filled with more embarrassing pratfalls. Does it merit suffering just to make a statement?

The stairs, on the flip side, 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 opt to give Nate a break and take the stairs. It ought to be an simple decision, but Baby Steps game is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt anytime you encounter an easy option. The world is filled with intentional pitfalls that turn a safe route into a difficulty on a dime. Is the staircase one more trick? Will Nate get all the way to the top just to be fooled by an ending prank? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished yet again by being compelled to refer to some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path results in a genuine moment of character development and therapeutic resolution 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 competent as anyone else, consciously choosing a tough path rather than suffering through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s challenging, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the dose of confidence that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the steps either. To choose that path is to eventually enable Nate to receive assistance. And when he accomplishes that, he discovers that there’s no secret drawback waiting for him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They go on for a long time, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he does not fall to the bottom if he falls. It’s a easy journey after lengthy difficulty. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, of course, opted for The Manbreaker. He strives to appear composed, but you can tell that he’s worn out, silently lamenting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to meet his agreement, hailing his new Lord, the deal hardly seems so bad. Who has concern for humiliation by this strange individual?

My Experience

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