head to head
vs
Pikmin 2vsSid Meier's Pirates!
Pikmin 2 leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); Sid Meier's Pirates! leans Optimization (Pure Optimization).
Pikmin 2Sid Meier's Pirates!
Axis by axis
Execution3 vs 4
Sid Meier's Pirates! leans harder on execution: Sword duel timing and ship-handling minigames
Reads0 vs 0
Even - both lean on reads about the same.
Variance4 vs 4
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization8 vs 7
Pikmin 2 leans harder on optimization: Squad composition and treasure routing dominate
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.