Building comparison
head to head
New Super Mario Bros. U DeluxevsRhythm Heaven
Neither is meaningfully harder - they pose close to the same test. The widest gap is execution, and it is a single point.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
Execution · Pure Mechanics
A classic 2D Mario platformer rewarding tight jump execution above all.
Rhythm Heaven
Execution · Pure Mechanics
Minimalist rhythm minigame collection demanding near-perfect beat timing.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe leans Execution (Pure Mechanics); Rhythm Heaven leans Execution (Pure Mechanics).
New Super Mario Bros. U DeluxeRhythm Heaven
Axis by axis
Execution8 vs 9
Rhythm Heaven leans a little harder on execution, though the gap is small.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
precise jump and platforming execution
Rhythm Heaven
Pure timing precision against audio cues.
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
fixed enemy patterns, no adaptation
Rhythm Heaven
No opponent exists.
Variance1 vs 1
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
minor enemy placement randomness
Rhythm Heaven
Cue patterns are fixed once heard.
Optimization3 vs 2
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe leans a little harder on optimization, though the gap is small.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
level routing for speed/collectibles
Rhythm Heaven
Learning each minigame's rhythm is shallow and quick.
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.