Building comparison
head to head
Bad RatsvsEarthBound
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
Bad Rats
Optimization · Systems & Chaos
Solving Rube Goldberg puzzles fighting physics that barely cooperates.
EarthBound
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A subversive JRPG where understanding rolling HP mechanics and PSI optimization defeats its quirky scripted encounters.
Bad Rats leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos); EarthBound leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Bad RatsEarthBound
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 2
EarthBound leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Bad Rats
Placing pieces takes no dexterity
EarthBound
Rolling HP meter has very mild timing implication
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Bad Rats
No opponent - just rats and physics
EarthBound
All enemies scripted with fixed attack patterns
Variance4 vs 4
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Bad Rats
Notoriously janky physics makes identical setups behave differently
EarthBound
PSI randomness, enemy attack variety, and encounter triggers add unpredictability
Optimization6 vs 7
EarthBound leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
Bad Rats
Each contraption puzzle has intended solvable solutions
EarthBound
Status effects, rolling HP strategy, and Franklin Badge usage are 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.