head to head
vs
Borderlands 3vsMiddle-earth: Shadow of War
Borderlands 3 leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery); Middle-earth: Shadow of War leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Borderlands 3Middle-earth: Shadow of War
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 5
Borderlands 3 leans harder on execution: Tighter gunplay than predecessors
Reads1 vs 1
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance6 vs 4
Borderlands 3 leans harder on variance: Weapon rolls and anointments randomize
Optimization8 vs 7
Borderlands 3 leans harder on optimization: Skill trees, anointments, gear math deep
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.