head to head

DonPachi cover artvsGhosts 'n Goblins cover art

DonPachivsGhosts 'n Goblins

DonPachi leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Ghosts 'n Goblins leans Execution (Pure Mechanics).

EXECUTION9 /10READS0 /10VARIANCE2 /10OPTIMIZATION6 /10
DonPachiGhosts 'n Goblins

Axis by axis

Execution9 vs 9

Even - both lean on execution about the same.

Reads0 vs 0

Even - both lean on reads about the same.

Variance2 vs 1

DonPachi leans harder on variance: Patterns fixed once memorized, minimal randomness

Optimization6 vs 6

Even - both lean on optimization about the same.

Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.

full breakdown

DonPachi

full breakdown

Ghosts 'n Goblins