head to head
vs
A Bird StoryvsDear Esther
A Bird Story leans Execution (Light / Casual); Dear Esther leans Variance (Light / Casual).
A Bird StoryDear Esther
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 0
A Bird Story leans harder on execution: Walking through scenes is the only input
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance0 vs 1
Dear Esther leans harder on variance: Narration fragments are semi-randomised between playthroughs.
Optimization1 vs 1
Even - both lean on optimization about the same.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.