head to head
vs
Cruelty SquadvsPayday 2
Cruelty Squad leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery); Payday 2 leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Cruelty SquadPayday 2
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 6
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads1 vs 0
Cruelty Squad leans harder on reads: NPCs are scripted; no player-adaptive behaviour present
Variance4 vs 4
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization7 vs 6
Cruelty Squad leans harder on optimization: Organ loadout synergies and market timing are the emergent puzzle
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.