head to head
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.

Variance · Light / Casual
A relaxing hidden-object game finding 100 cats in alien scenes.

Optimization · Light / Casual
Cyberpunk horror where a detective hacks the memories of the dying.
100 Aliens Cats leans Variance (Light / Casual); Observer leans Optimization (Light / Casual).
Observer leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
100 Aliens Cats
Pointing and clicking needs no dexterity
Observer
Walking with brief stealth segments
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
100 Aliens Cats
Solo hidden-object game with no opponent
Observer
The stalker sequence is scripted
100 Aliens Cats leans a little harder on variance, though the gap is small.
100 Aliens Cats
Cat positions are hidden until found
Observer
Unknown story branches and apartment secrets
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
100 Aliens Cats
Methodical searching speeds completion
Observer
Investigation logic and clue piecing
A matching score does not mean a matching test. Two games can both sit at 10 on execution and demand completely different things of you - which is why the reasoning above matters more than the number beside it.