Baby Steps Includes One of the Most Significant Decisions I've Ever Experienced in Video Games

I've dealt with some challenging choices in interactive entertainment. Certain choices I made in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima's final sequence prompted me to set down my controller for a good 10 minutes while I considered my choices. I am responsible for so many Krogan deaths in Mass Effect that I wish I could undo. None of those moments hold a candle to what could be the toughest selection I’ve had to make in a video game — and it concerns a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the makers of Ape Out, isn’t exactly a selection-based adventure. Certainly not in typical gaming terms. You simply have to walk around a sprawling open world as the protagonist Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can barely stand on his unsteady feet. It seems like one big ragebait joke, but Baby Steps’s appeal is in its unexpectedly meaningful plot that will sneak up on you when you least anticipate it. There’s no situation that showcases that quality like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Alert: Spoilers

A bit of context is required here. Baby Steps starts when Nate is magically whisked away from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He soon realizes that moving around in it is a challenge, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have atrophied his limbs. The slapstick elements of it all arises from users guiding Nate step by step, trying to maintain his balance.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has problems articulating that to others. As he progresses, he meets a group of unusual individuals in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A composed outdoorsman tries to give Nate a navigation aid, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he falls into an unavoidable hole and is offered a ladder, he attempts to act casual like he doesn’t need the help and actually wants to be stuck in the hole. During the narrative, you encounter plenty of irritating episodes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s not confident enough to take support.

The Pivotal Moment

That comes to a head in Baby Steps game’s key situation of decision. As Nate approaches the conclusion his journey, he realizes that he must ascend of a snow-capped peak. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to tell him that there are two ways up. If he’s prepared for difficulty, he can choose a very lengthy and risky path dubbed The Manbreaker. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps has to offer; taking it seems inadvisable to anyone.

But there’s a second option: He can just walk up a massive winding stairs as an alternative and get to the top in just moments. The single stipulation? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Lord” from now on if he chooses the simple path.

A Difficult Selection

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an painful decision in the game's narrative. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself culminating in a particularly bizarre situation. A portion of Nate's adventure is focused on the truth that he’s self-conscious of his physique and male identity. Every time he sees that dashing hiker, it’s a painful recollection of everything he’s not. Undertaking The Obstacle could be a time where he can prove that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that path is likely paved with more awkward mishaps. Is it worth suffering just to demonstrate something?

The steps, on the flip side, give Nate another big moment to choose whether to take assistance or not. The player has no choice in if they decline guidance, but they can decide to give Nate a break and opt for the steps. It should be an straightforward selection, but Baby Steps game is exceptionally cunning about making you feel paranoid anytime you find a gift horse. The environment includes intentional pitfalls that turn a safe route into a difficulty suddenly. Could the steps one more trick? Might Nate arrive to the very summit just to be disappointed by a final joke? And more concerning, is he ready to be diminished another time by being forced to call some weirdo Lord?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Both options leads to a authentic instance of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Obstacle, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as capable as others, voluntarily accepting a difficult route rather than enduring one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s hard, and possibly risky, but it’s the moment of strength that he needs.

But there’s no disgrace in the steps either. To opt for that way is to finally allow Nate to take support. And when he accomplishes that, he finds that there’s no secret drawback in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They continue for a while, but they’re easy to walk up and he does not fall completely down if he falls. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the outdoorsman who has, of course, chosen to take The Challenge. He attempts to act casual, but you can tell that he’s exhausted, silently lamenting the unnecessary challenge. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to fulfill his obligation, calling the character Lord, the agreement barely appears so unpleasant. Who has time to be embarrassed by this strange individual?

My Choice

In my playthrough, I opted for the stairs. A portion of my thinking just {wanted to call