head to head
vs
Graceful Explosion MachinevsMetal Slug
Graceful Explosion Machine leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Metal Slug leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Graceful Explosion MachineMetal Slug
Axis by axis
Execution8 vs 8
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance2 vs 1
Graceful Explosion Machine leans harder on variance: Spawn waves are fixed once a level is learned
Optimization5 vs 6
Metal Slug leans harder on optimization: One-credit clears come from memorising routes and spawn patterns
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.