head to head
vs
Metal WarriorsvsShovel Knight
Metal Warriors leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Shovel Knight leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
Metal WarriorsShovel Knight
Axis by axis
Execution7 vs 6
Metal Warriors leans harder on execution: Mech control, jetpack movement and aimed fire demand dexterity
Reads2 vs 1
Metal Warriors leans harder on reads: Versus mode adds light human prediction; campaign is scripted
Variance1 vs 1
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization4 vs 4
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.