Building comparison
head to head
Dust: An Elysian TailvsGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Execution · Practiced Mastery
A hand-drawn action metroidvania of aerial combo combat.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Optimization · Practiced Mastery
A sprawling open-world crime epic with RPG-style character stats across a whole state.
Dust: An Elysian Tail leans Execution (Practiced Mastery); Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Dust: An Elysian TailGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Axis by axis
Execution5 vs 4
Dust: An Elysian Tail leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Combo juggling with forgiving timing
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Flying school and drive-bys need decent hands
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Enemies never adapt
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Gang AI is scripted, never adaptive
Variance1 vs 2
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas leans a little harder on variance, though the gap is small.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Hidden areas until explored
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Territory wars and traffic add light randomness
Optimization5 vs 6
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
Dust: An Elysian Tail
Crafting and ability routes reward planning
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Stats, gym, weapon skill, and routes reward systematic play
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.
Related comparisons
Dust: An Elysian Tail vs Grand Theft Auto VGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas vs Grand Theft Auto VDust: An Elysian Tail vs The Witcher 3: Wild HuntGrand Theft Auto: San Andreas vs The Witcher 3: Wild HuntDust: An Elysian Tail vs Red Dead Redemption 2Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas vs Red Dead Redemption 2