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

I've faced some difficult decisions in interactive entertainment. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima final sequence led me to set down my controller for a good 10 minutes while I considered my alternatives. I am responsible for numerous Krogan deaths in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. Not one of those instances compare to what could be the most difficult decision I’ve had to make in gaming — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

The Game Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out game, is hardly a selection-based adventure. Definitely not in typical gaming terms. You only need to explore a vast game world as the protagonist Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his shaky limbs. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s strength comes from its surprisingly deep narrative that will sneak up on you when you least anticipate it. There’s no situation that demonstrates that power like a pivotal decision that I can’t stop thinking about.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps starts when Nate is transported from his family's basement and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that navigating this world is a difficulty, as a long time spent as a sedentary person have deteriorated his physical condition. The slapstick elements of it all comes from users guiding Nate gradually, trying to maintain his balance.

Nate needs help, but he has difficulty expressing that to other characters. Throughout his hero’s journey, he comes in contact with a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A cool, confident hiker tries to give Nate a navigation aid, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he plunges into an trapping cavity and is given a way out, he attempts to act casual like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be trapped in the pit. During the narrative, you encounter plenty of annoying scenarios where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too insecure to accept any assistance.

The Defining Decision

This culminates in Baby Steps game’s one true moment of choice. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he discovers that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has desperately tried to duck up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can choose a very lengthy and dangerous hiking trail named The Manbreaker. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to any human.

But there’s a other possibility: He can simply ascend a gigantic spiral staircase instead and reach the summit in a short time. The single stipulation? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am very serious when I say that this is an agonizing choice in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself reaching a climax in a single ridiculous instant. An element of Nate's story is focused on the truth that he’s insecure of his physique and male identity. Every time he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of what he fails to be. Attempting The Obstacle could be a time where he can prove that he’s as capable as his unilateral competitor, but that road is bound to be laden with more humiliating failures. Does it merit struggling just to make a statement?

The steps, on the other hand, give Nate another big moment to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The user doesn't get to decide in if they turn away a map, but they can opt to provide Nate with respite and opt for the steps. It might seem like an simple decision, 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. Is the staircase one more trick? Might Nate arrive to the very summit just to be let down by an ending prank? And more troubling, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being made to address an odd character as Lord?

No Right or Wrong

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no perfect selection. Either one results in a authentic instance of personal growth and emotional release for Nate. If you decide to take on The Challenge, it’s an philosophical victory. Nate eventually obtains a moment to show that he’s as capable as others, voluntarily accepting a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no alternative but to take. It’s hard, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the dose of confidence that he requires.

But there’s no shame in the stairs as well. To opt for that way is to at last permit Nate to take support. 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 to the bottom if he trips. It’s a simple climb after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the trekker who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s worn out, subtly ruing the needless difficulty. By the time Nate gets to the top and has to pay his debt, calling the character Lord, the deal hardly seems so nasty. Who has energy for shame by this freak?

Personal Reflection

During my game, I chose the staircase. Some part of my reasoning just {wanted to call