head to head
vs
Castlevania II: Simon's QuestvsWindbound
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Windbound leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos).
Castlevania II: Simon's QuestWindbound
Axis by axis
Execution4 vs 4
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance4 vs 5
Windbound leans harder on variance: Procedural islands and loot reshuffle every run.
Optimization7 vs 6
Castlevania II: Simon's Quest leans harder on optimization: Once decoded, it is pure item-and-route knowledge.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.