Building comparison
head to head
Anno 1602vsMedieval II: Total War
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
Anno 1602
Optimization · Pure Optimization
Island colonisation strategy about balancing population tiers against expanding supply chains.
Medieval II: Total War
Optimization · Pure Optimization
Grand strategy wargame mixing turn-based empire play with real-time battles.
Anno 1602 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Medieval II: Total War leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Anno 1602Medieval II: Total War
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 2
Medieval II: Total War leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Anno 1602
Slow real-time pace; no dexterity test.
Medieval II: Total War
real-time battle micro is modest
Reads1 vs 1
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Anno 1602
AI rivals act on fixed personalities, not adaptation.
Medieval II: Total War
campaign AI is exploitable and mappable
Variance3 vs 3
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Anno 1602
Island fertility layouts and rival starts are hidden initially.
Medieval II: Total War
fog of war and event triggers hide some state
Optimization9 vs 9
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Anno 1602
Population tiers and supply chains are a near-pure logistics solve.
Medieval II: Total War
economy, unit counters, and campaign map strategy dominate
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.