head to head
vs
Penumbra: Black PlaguevsSunless Skies
Penumbra: Black Plague leans Optimization (Systems & Chaos); Sunless Skies leans Variance (Systems & Chaos).
Penumbra: Black PlagueSunless Skies
Axis by axis
Execution2 vs 2
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance5 vs 6
Sunless Skies leans harder on variance: Hidden ports, story branches and terror events
Optimization7 vs 6
Penumbra: Black Plague leans harder on optimization: Physics puzzles and evasion routes are fully solvable
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.