head to head
vs
Empire: Total WarvsTom Clancy's EndWar
Empire: Total War leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Tom Clancy's EndWar leans Optimization (Mind & Math).
Empire: Total WarTom Clancy's EndWar
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 2
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads3 vs 5
Tom Clancy's EndWar leans harder on reads: Multiplayer theatre battles reward predicting enemy unit commitments
Variance3 vs 2
Empire: Total War leans harder on variance: Campaign AI and battle dice noise
Optimization8 vs 7
Empire: Total War leans harder on optimization: Campaign economy and line-infantry tactics are mappable
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.