head to head
vs
Anno 1503vsSid Meier's Civilization
Anno 1503 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Sid Meier's Civilization leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Anno 1503Sid Meier's Civilization
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 0
Anno 1503 leans harder on execution: Leisurely building and trade routing; hands irrelevant.
Reads1 vs 1
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance3 vs 4
Sid Meier's Civilization leans harder on variance: Map generation and combat rolls hide early information
Optimization9 vs 9
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.