head to head
vs
Broken Sword: The Smoking MirrorvsIf on a Winter's Night, Four Travelers
Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror leans Optimization (Light / Casual); If on a Winter's Night, Four Travelers leans Optimization (Light / Casual).
Broken Sword: The Smoking MirrorIf on a Winter's Night, Four Travelers
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 0
Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror leans harder on execution: no physical skill, point-and-click
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance1 vs 2
If on a Winter's Night, Four Travelers leans harder on variance: Story beats are unknown only on first viewing
Optimization3 vs 3
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.