head to head
vs
Half-LifevsShadow of the Beast
Half-Life leans Execution (Practiced Mastery); Shadow of the Beast leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Half-LifeShadow of the Beast
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 7
Shadow of the Beast leans harder on execution: Brutal one-hit enemies demand exact timing and reflexes
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance2 vs 1
Half-Life leans harder on variance: Set pieces surprise only on first run
Optimization6 vs 6
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.