Building comparison
head to head
Children of a Dead EarthvsMedieval II: Total War
Medieval II: Total War asks more than Children of a Dead Earth, and the gap is variance.
Children of a Dead Earth
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A hard sci-fi spacecraft combat simulator using real physics.
Medieval II: Total War
Optimization · Pure Optimization
Grand strategy wargame mixing turn-based empire play with real-time battles.
Children of a Dead Earth leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Medieval II: Total War leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Children of a Dead EarthMedieval II: Total War
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 2
Same score on execution - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Children of a Dead Earth
minimal twitch demand, orbital mechanics focus
Medieval II: Total War
real-time battle micro is modest
Reads1 vs 1
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Children of a Dead Earth
AI opponents follow physics, minimal adaptation
Medieval II: Total War
campaign AI is exploitable and mappable
Variance1 vs 3
Medieval II: Total War leans clearly harder on variance.
Children of a Dead Earth
deterministic physics, near-zero randomness
Medieval II: Total War
fog of war and event triggers hide some state
Optimization10 vs 9
Children of a Dead Earth leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
Children of a Dead Earth
realistic orbital combat engineering is fully solvable
Medieval II: Total War
economy, unit counters, and campaign map strategy dominate
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.