head to head
vs
F-Zero XvsMarvel Cosmic Invasion
F-Zero X leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Marvel Cosmic Invasion leans Execution (Pure Mechanics).
F-Zero XMarvel Cosmic Invasion
Axis by axis
Execution8 vs 8
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads1 vs 1
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance1 vs 2
Marvel Cosmic Invasion leans harder on variance: some enemy spawn randomness
Optimization5 vs 4
F-Zero X leans harder on optimization: Boost-health tradeoffs and shortcuts reward routing
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.