Building comparison
head to head
Age of EmpiresvsEmpire Earth
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is reads, and it is a single point.
Age of Empires
Optimization · Mind & Math
The original historical RTS of advancing ages, booming economies, and rushing armies.
Empire Earth
Optimization · Mind & Math
14-epoch RTS where economic scaling, epoch-rush timing, and civilization counter-picks span stone age to future war.
Age of Empires leans Optimization (Mind & Math); Empire Earth leans Optimization (Mind & Math).
Age of EmpiresEmpire Earth
Axis by axis
Execution5 vs 5
Same score on execution - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Age of Empires
APM and micro under pressure
Empire Earth
Epoch-spanning army micro and hero management need consistent attention
Reads6 vs 7
Empire Earth leans a little harder on reads, though the gap is small.
Age of Empires
Scouting and countering human strategies
Empire Earth
Opponent epoch rush and civilization bonuses must be predicted
Variance4 vs 3
Age of Empires leans a little harder on variance, though the gap is small.
Age of Empires
Fog of war and map resources
Empire Earth
Map resource distribution adds uncertainty at start; converges quickly
Optimization8 vs 8
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Age of Empires
Build orders and eco timing dominate
Empire Earth
Epoch advancement timing and citizen allocation are near-optimally solvable
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.