head to head
vs
Donkey KongvsSuper Metroid
Donkey Kong leans Execution (Practiced Mastery); Super Metroid leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Donkey KongSuper Metroid
Axis by axis
Execution8 vs 7
Donkey Kong leans harder on execution: Frame-tight jumps over barrels under arcade pressure
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
Super Metroid leans harder on optimization: Sequence-breaking route optimisation is the enduring meta-game
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.