The Game Baby Steps Presents Among the Most Impactful Choices I've Ever Faced in Video Games

I've faced some difficult choices in gaming. Some of my decisions in Life is Strange series continue to trouble me. Ghost of Tsushima concluding moments prompted me to pause the game for a good 10 minutes while I weighed my alternatives. I am accountable for so many Krogan fatalities in the Mass Effect series that I wish I could undo. Not one of those instances measure up to what possibly is the most difficult decision I've faced in a video game — and it has to do with a giant staircase.

Baby Steps, the latest game from the creators of Ape Out game, is not really a choice-driven game. Certainly not in typical gaming terms. You simply have to walk around a vast game world as the protagonist Nate, a onesie-wearing manchild who can hardly stay upright on his wobbly legs. It seems like an exercise in frustration, but Baby Steps game’s appeal is in its deceptively impactful story that will sneak up on you when you’re least expecting it. There’s no situation that demonstrates that power like one major choice that remains on my mind.

Spoiler Warning

Some background information is required here. Baby Steps game begins as Nate is transported from his parents’ basement and into a magical realm. He quickly discovers that navigating this world is a challenge, as a lifetime spent as a couch potato have deteriorated his physical condition. The physical comedy of it all arises from gamers directing Nate gradually, trying to keep his ragdoll body standing.

Nate requires assistance, but he has difficulty expressing that to others. During his adventure, he encounters a group of unusual individuals in the world who each propose to help him out. A cool, confident hiker attempts to offer Nate a navigation aid, but he clumsily declines in the game’s funniest instant. When he drops into an unavoidable hole and is presented with a ladder, he strives to appear nonchalant like he can manage alone and genuinely desires to be trapped in the pit. Throughout the story, you see numerous annoying scenarios where Nate complicates his own situation because he’s too self-conscious to receive help.

The Pivotal Moment

This culminates in Baby Steps’s one true moment of selection. As Nate nears the end his journey, he finds that he must climb to the top of a snowy mountain. The de facto groundskeeper of the world (who Nate has consistently evaded up to this point) comes to let him know that there are two paths upward. If he’s up for a challenge, he can take an extremely long and dangerous hiking trail dubbed The Challenge. It is the most daunting obstacle Baby Steps game has to offer; attempting it appears unwise to anyone.

But there’s a alternative choice: He can simply ascend a gigantic spiral staircase instead and reach the summit in a few minutes. The single stipulation? He’ll have to address the guardian “Lord” from now on if he takes the easy route.

A Painful Choice

I am absolutely sincere when I say that this is an difficult selection in this situation. It’s every one of Nate's doubts about himself coming to a head in a particularly bizarre situation. Part of Nate’s journey is focused on the fact that he’s insecure of his body and his masculinity. Whenever he sees that handsome trekker, it’s a painful recollection of what he fails to be. Taking on The Challenge could be a time where he can show that he’s as competent as his one-sided rival, but that route is sure to be laden with more embarrassing pratfalls. Is it worth struggling just to make a statement?

The stairs, 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 reject navigation help, but they can choose to provide Nate with respite and choose the staircase. It should be an simple decision, but Baby Steps is remarkably shrewd about creating doubt each time you encounter an easy option. The environment includes planned obstacles that change a secure way into a obstacle on a dime. Could the steps yet another trap? Could Nate reach to the very summit just to be disappointed by an ending prank? And more concerning, is he ready to be diminished once again by being made to address a strange individual as Master?

No Correct Answer

The beauty of that moment is that there’s no correct or incorrect choice. Each path results in a real situation of protagonist evolution and catharsis for Nate. If you choose to tackle The Manbreaker, it’s an existential win. Nate finally gets a opportunity to demonstrate that he’s as able as others, consciously choosing a difficult route rather than suffering through one that he has no choice but to follow. It’s hard, and maybe ill-advised, but it’s the bit of empowerment that he needs.

But there’s no shame in the steps too. To opt for that way is to eventually enable Nate to receive assistance. And when he accomplishes that, he realizes that there’s no real catch awaiting him. The stairs aren’t a prank. They continue for a while, but they’re easy to walk up and he won't slip completely down if he falls. It’s a straightforward ascent after extended challenges. Midway through, he even has a chat with the outdoorsman who has, unsurprisingly, selected The Challenge. He strives to appear composed, but you can see that he’s worn out, subtly ruing 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 nasty. Who has time to be embarrassed by this freak?

Personal Reflection

When I played, I selected the steps. Part of me just {wanted to call