Baby Steps Includes One of the Most Impactful Choices I've Ever Faced in a Game

I've dealt with some difficult choices in video games. Several of my selections in Life is Strange still haunt me. Ghost of Tsushima ending section prompted me to pause the game for a good 10 minutes while I considered my choices. I am the cause of countless Krogan demises in the Mass Effect series that I wish I could undo. Not one of those instances hold a candle to what possibly is the toughest selection I've faced in a video game — and it concerns a enormous set of steps.

The Game Baby Steps, the newest release from the creators of Ape Out game, is not really a selection-based adventure. Certainly not in any traditional sense. You must navigate a sprawling open world as Nate, a grown-up in childish attire who can hardly stay upright on his unsteady feet. It appears to be a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps’s power lies in its surprisingly deep narrative that will sneak up on you when you’re least expecting it. There’s not a single instance that exemplifies that strength like a pivotal decision that I keep reflecting on.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is needed at this point. Baby Steps begins as Nate is transported from his family's basement and into a fictional universe. He quickly discovers that navigating this world is a difficulty, as years spent as a sedentary person have weakened his muscles. The humorous physicality of it all arises from gamers directing Nate one step at a time, trying to prevent him from falling over.

The protagonist needs aid, but he has difficulty expressing that to anyone. Throughout his hero’s journey, he encounters a cast of eccentric characters in the world who all offer to give him a hand. A cool, confident hiker seeks to provide Nate a guide, but he uncomfortably rejects in the game’s best laugh-out-loud moment. When he drops into an trapping cavity and is given a way out, he attempts to act casual like he requires no assistance and genuinely desires to be trapped in the pit. During the narrative, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s not confident enough to take support.

The Ultimate Choice

That comes to a head in Baby Steps’s key situation of choice. As Nate nears the end his adventure, he finds that he must ascend of a snowy mountain. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two ways up. If he’s up for a challenge, he can opt for a particularly extended and hazardous route named The Manbreaker. It is the most formidable barrier Baby Steps game provides; choosing it looks risky to any person.

But there’s a second option: He can merely climb a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and get to the top in a few minutes. The sole condition? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Sir” from now on if he takes the easy route.

An Agonizing Decision

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an difficult selection in the game's narrative. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself coming to a head in a single ridiculous instant. An element of Nate's story is revolves around the truth that he’s unconfident of his body and his masculinity. Every time he sees that impressive outdoorsman, it’s a difficult memory of all he lacks. Taking on The Manbreaker could be a instance where he can demonstrate that he’s as capable as his one-sided rival, but that route is sure to be filled with more humiliating failures. Is it worth suffering just to demonstrate something?

The steps, on the contrary, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to decide between receiving aid or refusing it. The player has no choice in about they decline guidance, but they can decide to give Nate a break and take the stairs. It should be an easy choice, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about creating doubt anytime you encounter an easy option. The environment includes intentional pitfalls that change a secure way into a setback suddenly. Could the steps an additional deception? Will Nate get at the peak just to be disappointed by a final joke? And more concerning, is he willing to be emasculated yet again by being forced to call a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The excellence of that situation is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Either one leads to a genuine moment of protagonist evolution and therapeutic resolution for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an personal triumph. Nate eventually obtains a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as competent as others, voluntarily accepting a tough path rather than enduring one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s difficult, and perhaps unwise, but it’s the moment of strength that he needs.

But there’s no disgrace in the steps either. To select that route 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 steps are not a joke. They go on for a long time, but they’re straightforward to ascend and he does not fall all the way down if he trips. It’s a simple climb after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a conversation with the hiker who has, unsurprisingly, chosen to take The Challenge. He tries to play it cool, but you can discern that he’s worn out, subtly ruing the needless difficulty. By the time Nate reaches the summit and has to meet his agreement, addressing his new Master, the deal hardly seems so unpleasant. Who has concern for humiliation by this odd character?

My Choice

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