Building comparison
head to head
Dune IIvsPortal
Neither is simply harder - they are hard in different places. Dune II demands more variance; Portal demands more execution.
Dune II
Optimization · Pure Optimization
The 1992 template for the entire real-time strategy genre.
Portal
Optimization · Pure Optimization
The portal-gun puzzle game whose solutions are everything.
Dune II leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Portal leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Dune IIPortal
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 4
Portal leans clearly harder on execution.
Dune II
Slow clicking, no precision demands
Portal
Portal placement timing modest.
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Dune II
AI attacks on predictable timers
Portal
No adversary modeling player.
Variance3 vs 0
Dune II leans clearly harder on variance.
Dune II
Unscouted map and spice fields early
Portal
Deterministic chambers; no randomness.
Optimization8 vs 8
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Dune II
Build orders and base economy decide everything
Portal
Pure puzzle-solving optimization.
A matching score does not mean a matching test. Two games can both sit at 10 on execution and demand completely different things of you - which is why the reasoning above matters more than the number beside it.