Building comparison
head to head
Craft the WorldvsFallout
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
Craft the World
Optimization · Pure Optimization
Optimising a dwarf fortress economy against a randomly generated world.
Fallout
Optimization · Pure Optimization
The original post-apocalyptic CRPG where character builds solve the wasteland.
Craft the World leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Fallout leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Craft the WorldFallout
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 1
Craft the World leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Craft the World
Indirect dwarf orders mean hands barely matter
Fallout
Turn-based, no dexterity
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Craft the World
Monster waves follow predictable scripted triggers
Fallout
No adaptive opposition
Variance4 vs 4
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Craft the World
Random world generation hides resources until dug out
Fallout
To-hit rolls and random encounters
Optimization7 vs 8
Fallout leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
Craft the World
Fortress layout, tech tree and crafting chains are the real game
Fallout
SPECIAL builds and quest routing are deeply solvable
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.