Building comparison
head to head
PsychonautsvsSuper Mario Land
Neither is harder. They score identically on all four axes, so the difference between them is in kind, not degree.
Psychonauts
Execution · Practiced Mastery
Moderate platforming execution through inventive but fixed mental levels.
Super Mario Land
Execution · Practiced Mastery
Mario's compact Game Boy debut with odd physics, shooter stages, and Sarasaland instead of the Mushroom Kingdom.
Psychonauts leans Execution (Practiced Mastery); Super Mario Land leans Execution (Practiced Mastery).
PsychonautsSuper Mario Land
Axis by axis
Execution6 vs 6
Same score on execution - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Psychonauts
Platforming and psychic combat need moderate precision
Super Mario Land
Tiny screen and slippery physics demand careful jumps
Reads0 vs 0
Same score on reads - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Psychonauts
Mental-world enemies follow fixed behaviours
Super Mario Land
Fully scripted patterns
Variance1 vs 1
Same score on variance - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Psychonauts
Level layouts are fixed and quickly known
Super Mario Land
Minor secret rooms, quickly mapped
Optimization4 vs 4
Same score on optimization - which means the number cannot separate them. The difference is in what each one asks of you.
Psychonauts
Collectible routing and power upgrades add light planning
Super Mario Land
Short levels with simple optimal routes
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.