head to head
vs
Contra III: The Alien WarsvsDesync
Contra III: The Alien Wars leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Desync leans Execution (Pure Mechanics).
Contra III: The Alien WarsDesync
Axis by axis
Execution9 vs 9
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 1
Desync leans harder on reads: Enemies are scripted, not adaptive opponents
Variance1 vs 2
Desync leans harder on variance: Enemy spawns are fixed once learned
Optimization6 vs 6
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.