head to head
vs
Command & Conquer: Red AlertvsTotal War: Arena
Command & Conquer: Red Alert leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Total War: Arena leans Reads (Mind & Math).
Command & Conquer: Red AlertTotal War: Arena
Axis by axis
Execution5 vs 4
Command & Conquer: Red Alert leans harder on execution: Micro and base management under time pressure
Reads5 vs 6
Total War: Arena leans harder on reads: Reading enemy human team positioning and feints is central
Variance3 vs 3
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization8 vs 6
Command & Conquer: Red Alert leans harder on optimization: Ore economy and build orders decide games
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.