head to head
vs
Contra III: The Alien WarsvsDevil May Cry 5
Contra III: The Alien Wars leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Devil May Cry 5 leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Contra III: The Alien WarsDevil May Cry 5
Axis by axis
Execution9 vs 9
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance1 vs 1
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization6 vs 7
Devil May Cry 5 leans harder on optimization: Loadouts, breakers, and enemy-specific tech reward deep study
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.