head to head
vs
Hearts of Iron IVvsSid Meier's Ace Patrol: Pacific Skies
Hearts of Iron IV leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Sid Meier's Ace Patrol: Pacific Skies leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Hearts of Iron IVSid Meier's Ace Patrol: Pacific Skies
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 2
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads4 vs 4
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance3 vs 4
Sid Meier's Ace Patrol: Pacific Skies leans harder on variance: Combat dice and positioning add chance
Optimization9 vs 8
Hearts of Iron IV leans harder on optimization: division templates and production solved
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.