head to head
vs
Mortal Kombat XvsRivals of Aether
Mortal Kombat X leans Execution (Grand Arena); Rivals of Aether leans Reads (Grand Arena).
Mortal Kombat XRivals of Aether
Axis by axis
Execution8 vs 8
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads8 vs 9
Rivals of Aether leans harder on reads: No shields forces constant adaptive prediction against human opponents
Variance1 vs 2
Rivals of Aether leans harder on variance: Stage hazards add minor variance
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.