head to head
vs
Caves of QudvsX-COM: UFO Defense
Caves of Qud leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos); X-COM: UFO Defense leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos).
Caves of QudX-COM: UFO Defense
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 1
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance7 vs 6
Caves of Qud leans harder on variance: Procedural world, mutations, items dominate runs.
Optimization9 vs 8
Caves of Qud leans harder on optimization: Mutation builds and routing reward deep planning.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.