head to head
vs
Payday 2vsSoulmask
Payday 2 leans Execution (Practiced Mastery); Soulmask leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Payday 2Soulmask
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 5
Payday 2 leans harder on execution: Sustained gunfights and stealth execution under pressure
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance4 vs 4
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization6 vs 7
Soulmask leans harder on optimization: Mask power system, base design, and NPC tribe management are systematic
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.