head to head
vs
CupheadvsSekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Cuphead leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
CupheadSekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Axis by axis
Execution9 vs 9
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 2
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice leans harder on reads: Mikiri and perilous tells are scripted, not adaptive.
Variance1 vs 0
Cuphead leans harder on variance: Minor attack-order shuffling between phases.
Optimization6 vs 7
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice leans harder on optimization: Boss decks and prosthetic choices are fully learnable.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.