Baby Steps Features One of the Most Meaningful Choices I've Ever Experienced in Gaming

I've faced some difficult decisions in video games. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series remain on my mind. Ghost of Tsushima's final sequence led me to set down my controller for a good 10 minutes while I thought through my alternatives. I am the cause of numerous Krogan demises in the Mass Effect series that I regret deeply. None of those moments compare to what could be the hardest choice I've faced in a video game — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the recent title from the developers of Ape Out game, is not really a decision-focused experience. Certainly not in any traditional sense. You only need to navigate a vast game world as Nate, a adult in a onesie who can struggle to remain on his unsteady feet. It seems like a setup for annoyance, but Baby Steps game’s strength comes from its deceptively impactful story that will surprise you when you least anticipate it. There’s no moment that demonstrates that power like a key selection that I can’t stop thinking about.

Note: Spoilers Ahead

Some background information is necessary here. Baby Steps game starts when Nate is magically whisked away from his parents’ basement and into a fictional universe. He immediately finds that navigating this world is a challenge, as years spent as a couch potato have weakened his muscles. The physical comedy of it all stems from players controlling Nate one step at a time, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate needs help, but he has difficulty expressing that to other characters. As he progresses, he comes in contact with a collection of quirky personalities in the world who everyone tries to give him a hand. A composed outdoorsman seeks to provide Nate a navigation aid, but he awkwardly refuses in the game’s most hilarious scene. When he drops into an trapping cavity and is given a way out, he strives to appear nonchalant like he can manage alone and truly prefers to be confined in the cavity. As the plot unfolds, you encounter plenty of irritating episodes where Nate creates additional difficulties because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Pivotal Moment

Everything builds up in Baby Steps’s key situation of choice. As Nate nears the end his quest, he finds that he must reach the summit of a snow-capped peak. The default guardian of the world (who Nate has actively avoided up to this point) appears to let him know that there are two routes to the top. If he’s up for a challenge, he can choose a very lengthy and risky path named The Obstacle. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game provides; choosing it looks risky to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can merely climb a enormous coiled steps as an alternative and get to the top in just moments. The sole condition? He’ll have to call the groundskeeper “Master” from now on if he opts for the effortless way.

A Painful Choice

I am completely earnest when I say that this is an painful decision in context. It’s all of Nate’s insecurities about himself reaching a climax in a particularly bizarre situation. A portion of Nate's adventure is revolves around the fact that he’s self-conscious of his physique and male identity. Each instance he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a difficult memory of all he lacks. Undertaking The Obstacle could be a moment where he can show that he’s as competent as his imagined opponent, but that path is likely paved with more humiliating failures. Is it justified suffering just to demonstrate something?

The stairs, on the contrary, offer Nate an additional crucial instance to either accept or reject help. The player has no choice in if they reject navigation help, but they can choose to allow Nate some relief and choose the staircase. It might seem like an simple decision, but Baby Steps is devilishly clever about causing suspicion whenever you find a gift horse. The environment includes intentional pitfalls that transform an easy path into a setback on a dime. Are the stairs one more trick? Might Nate arrive all the way to the top just to be let down by an ending prank? And more troubling, is he willing to be emasculated once again by being compelled to refer to a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no right or wrong answer. Each path leads to a genuine moment of character development and emotional release for Nate. If you decide to take on The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate eventually obtains a chance to prove that he’s as capable as everyone else, consciously choosing a tough path rather than struggling through one that he has no option except to pursue. It’s difficult, and possibly risky, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he requires.

But there’s no embarrassment in the stairs as well. To select that route is to at last permit Nate to accept help. And when he does so, he discovers that there’s no real catch in store for him. The staircase is not a trick. They extend for some distance, but they’re simple to climb and he doesn’t slide completely down if he stumbles. It’s a simple climb after hours of struggle. Midway through, he even has a discussion with the hiker who has, of course, selected The Obstacle. He attempts to act casual, but you can discern that he’s fatigued, silently lamenting the pointless struggle. By the time Nate arrives at the peak and has to pay his debt, hailing his new Lord, the arrangement scarcely looks so bad. Who has concern for humiliation by this freak?

My Experience

In my playthrough, I chose the staircase. Part of me just {wanted to call