Building comparison
head to head
Age of Empires II: Definitive EditionvsNatural Selection 2
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition asks more than Natural Selection 2, and the gap is optimization.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
Optimization · Grand Arena
The genre-defining historical RTS, still alive on the ladder.
Natural Selection 2
Execution · Grand Arena
Asymmetric FPS-RTS hybrid where aliens and marines fight under live human commanders.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition leans Optimization (Grand Arena); Natural Selection 2 leans Execution (Grand Arena).
Age of Empires II: Definitive EditionNatural Selection 2
Axis by axis
Execution7 vs 8
Natural Selection 2 leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
micro and macro APM at high ladder
Natural Selection 2
Skulk movement and marine aim have steep ceilings
Reads7 vs 6
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition leans a little harder on reads, though the gap is small.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
PvP ladder rewards adaptation
Natural Selection 2
Human commanders mind-game tech and map control
Variance2 vs 2
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
random map spawns minor
Natural Selection 2
Symmetric maps, little randomness
Optimization8 vs 6
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition leans clearly harder on optimization.
Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition
civ build orders deeply mapped
Natural Selection 2
Tech trees, res flow, and lifeform timings
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.