head to head
vs
Golden Sun: The Lost AgevsStardew Valley
Golden Sun: The Lost Age leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Stardew Valley leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Golden Sun: The Lost AgeStardew Valley
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 1
Golden Sun: The Lost Age leans harder on execution: Menu-driven combat inherited from the first game
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance3 vs 3
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization8 vs 8
Even - both lean on optimization about the same.
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.