Building comparison
head to head
Half-Life 2vsSuper Mario World
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
Half-Life 2
Execution · Pure Mechanics
Landmark FPS built on physics puzzles and tight gunplay.
Super Mario World
Execution · Pure Mechanics
Precise jump execution across fixed levels with secrets to memorise.
Half-Life 2 leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Super Mario World leans Execution (Pure Mechanics).
Half-Life 2Super Mario World
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 7
Super Mario World leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
Half-Life 2
Gravity gun and shooting demand precision.
Super Mario World
Perfect inputs trivialise every jump, spin and cape flight
Reads1 vs 0
Half-Life 2 leans a little harder on reads, though the gap is small.
Half-Life 2
Combine AI scripted, non-adaptive.
Super Mario World
Scripted Koopas adapt to nothing
Variance1 vs 1
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Half-Life 2
Almost no randomness.
Super Mario World
Levels are fixed; nothing hidden survives one playthrough
Optimization3 vs 4
Super Mario World leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
Half-Life 2
Linear progression with no builds.
Super Mario World
Secret exits and route knowledge add a modest solvable layer
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.