The Game Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Impactful Decisions I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've dealt with some hard choices in interactive entertainment. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima's concluding moments made me pause the game for a good 10 minutes while I thought through my alternatives. I am accountable for numerous Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I regret deeply. Not a single one of those situations measure up to what now might be the hardest choice I've ever made in gaming — and it involves a massive stairway.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out, isn’t exactly a selection-based adventure. Definitely not in any traditional sense. You must walk around a sprawling open world as Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can barely stand on his shaky limbs. It appears to be an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its deceptively impactful story that will surprise you when you’re least expecting it. There’s no situation that showcases that quality like one major choice that I can’t stop thinking about.

Alert: Spoilers

Some scene setting is required here. Baby Steps begins as the protagonist is suddenly taken from the basement of his home and into a fictional universe. He soon realizes that navigating this world is a difficulty, as years spent as a inactive individual have atrophied his limbs. The physical comedy of it all stems from players controlling Nate gradually, trying to prevent him from falling over.

Nate needs help, but he has trouble voicing that to anyone. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a collection of quirky personalities in the world who all offer to assist him. A composed outdoorsman tries to give Nate a guide, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an unavoidable hole and is given a way out, he tries to play it off like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. Throughout the story, you encounter plenty of frustrating vignettes where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too self-conscious to accept any assistance.

The Pivotal Moment

That comes to a head in Baby Steps’s single genuine instance of choice. As Nate gets close to finishing his adventure, he finds that he must climb to the top of a snow-capped peak. The unofficial caretaker of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) shows up to tell him that there are two routes to the top. If he’s up for a challenge, he can opt for a particularly extended and risky path dubbed The Manbreaker. It is the most intimidating challenge Baby Steps game includes; choosing it looks risky to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can simply ascend a enormous coiled steps instead and arrive at the peak in a few minutes. The single stipulation? He’ll have to refer to the caretaker “Master” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Painful Choice

I am very serious when I say that this is an painful decision in this situation. It’s the totality of Nate's self-consciousness about himself culminating in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is focused on the fact that he’s unconfident of his physique and male identity. Whenever he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a hard reminder of what he fails to be. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a instance where he can show that he’s as able as his unilateral competitor, but that path is likely laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it justified struggling just to demonstrate something?

The staircase, on the flip side, give Nate another big moment to choose whether to take assistance or not. The gamer cannot choose in if they reject navigation help, but they can decide to give Nate a break and choose the staircase. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about making you feel paranoid each time you encounter an easy option. The game world contains planned obstacles that turn a safe route into a setback on a dime. Are the stairs one more trick? Will Nate get all the way to the top just to be let down by a final joke? And more troubling, is he ready to be diminished once again by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Either one brings about a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Manbreaker, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as capable as anyone else, willingly taking on a difficult route rather than enduring one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s challenging, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the moment of strength that he craves.

But there’s no shame in the staircase as well. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to receive assistance. And when he does, he discovers that there’s no hidden trick in store for him. The steps are not a joke. They continue for a while, but they’re simple to climb and he does not fall completely down if he stumbles. It’s a straightforward ascent after lengthy difficulty. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, naturally, opted for The Manbreaker. He attempts to act casual, but you can discern that he’s worn out, quietly regretting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to fulfill his obligation, addressing his new Master, the agreement barely appears so unpleasant. Who has concern for humiliation by this strange individual?

Personal Reflection

When I played, I chose the staircase. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call