Building comparison
head to head
Paper Mario: The Origami KingvsPortal 2
Neither is simply harder - they are hard in different places. Paper Mario: The Origami King demands more variance; Portal 2 demands more optimization.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A puzzle-combat Paper Mario built around rotating rings.
Portal 2
Optimization · Pure Optimization
A first-person puzzle game where seeing the solution is the whole skill.
Paper Mario: The Origami King leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Portal 2 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Paper Mario: The Origami KingPortal 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.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Light timing on action commands
Portal 2
Portal placement requires some precision but timing is lenient.
Reads1 vs 0
Paper Mario: The Origami King leans a little harder on reads, though the gap is small.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Scripted enemies
Portal 2
No opponent; puzzles are static.
Variance2 vs 0
Paper Mario: The Origami King leans clearly harder on variance.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Limited puzzle randomness
Portal 2
Puzzles are deterministic with no randomness.
Optimization7 vs 9
Portal 2 leans clearly harder on optimization.
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Ring puzzle solving and accessory loadouts
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.