head to head
vs
Army Men: RTSvsRome: Total War
Army Men: RTS leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Rome: Total War leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Army Men: RTSRome: Total War
Axis by axis
Execution4 vs 3
Army Men: RTS leans harder on execution: Light micro matters; simplified controls cap the ceiling
Reads2 vs 2
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance1 vs 2
Rome: Total War leans harder on variance: Diplomacy and AI moves add modest fog
Optimization7 vs 8
Rome: Total War leans harder on optimization: Campaign economy, recruitment, and battle tactics are solvable
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.