Building comparison
head to head
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping StarsvsPortal 2
Portal 2 asks more than Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars, and the gap is optimization.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A lemmings-style puzzle series testing deterministic route planning for marching minis.
Portal 2
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A first-person puzzle game where seeing the solution is the whole skill.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Portal 2 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping StarsPortal 2
Axis by axis
Execution3 vs 3
Same score on execution - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Stylus rib-placement under mild time pressure
Portal 2
Portal placement requires some precision but timing is lenient.
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Minis follow strict lemming-like movement rules
Portal 2
No opponent; puzzles are static.
Variance0 vs 0
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Puzzles are fully deterministic and visible
Portal 2
Puzzles are deterministic with no randomness.
Optimization7 vs 9
Portal 2 leans clearly harder on optimization.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars
Routing minis to the door efficiently is the whole test
Portal 2
Solving the puzzle's logic IS the entire game.
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.