head to head
vs
Kathy Rain: Director's CutvsPenumbra: Black Plague
Kathy Rain: Director's Cut leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos); Penumbra: Black Plague leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos).
Kathy Rain: Director's CutPenumbra: Black Plague
Axis by axis
Execution1 vs 2
Penumbra: Black Plague leans harder on execution: Physics-grab interactions need only basic mouse control
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance5 vs 5
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization6 vs 7
Penumbra: Black Plague leans harder on optimization: Physics puzzles and evasion routes are fully solvable
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.