head to head
vs
Death StrandingvsMedieval: Total War
Death Stranding leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Medieval: Total War leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Death StrandingMedieval: Total War
Axis by axis
Execution3 vs 3
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads1 vs 2
Medieval: Total War leans harder on reads: Multiplayer battles add human feints; campaign AI is scripted
Variance3 vs 3
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization7 vs 8
Medieval: Total War leans harder on optimization: Campaign economy and battlefield doctrine are deeply 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.