head to head
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is reads, and it is a single point.

Optimization · Pure Optimization
Optimizing pair-up chains and offspring builds to steamroll deterministically scripted maps.

Optimization · Pure Optimization
A soccer management sim about optimizing squad, finances and tactics over a career.
Fire Emblem Fates leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); New Star Manager leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Same score on execution - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Fire Emblem Fates
Turn-based menu play; no hand-speed demands
New Star Manager
Menu and tap input, no physical performance demand
New Star Manager leans a little harder on reads, though the gap is small.
Fire Emblem Fates
AI follows scripted attack priorities, not player modeling
New Star Manager
AI opponents follow systems, not adaptive mind-modelling
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Fire Emblem Fates
Dual-strike/guard procs and hit rates inject meaningful RNG
New Star Manager
Match outcomes and events carry meaningful randomness
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Fire Emblem Fates
Offspring seals, asset/flaw selection, and supports are deeply planned
New Star Manager
Squad building, training and tactics are the solvable core
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.