head to head
vs
Rise of Nations: Rise of LegendsvsThe Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II
Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends leans Optimization (Pure Optimization); The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II leans Optimization (Practiced Mastery).
Rise of Nations: Rise of LegendsThe Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II
Axis by axis
Execution5 vs 5
Even - both lean on execution about the same.
Reads4 vs 5
The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II leans harder on reads: Human opponents in skirmish reward prediction
Variance2 vs 2
Even - both lean on variance about the same.
Optimization8 vs 7
Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends leans harder on optimization: Asymmetric faction trees and expansion timing reward deep study
Two games can score the same on an axis and still test it in very different ways - read each rationale, not just the number.